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B.C. premier says feds and premiers have right-left strategy to tackle Trump tariffsPolice release new photos as they search for the gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO NEW YORK (AP) — Two law enforcement officials say a masked gunman who stalked and killed the leader of one of the largest U.S. health insurance companies on a Manhattan sidewalk used ammunition emblazoned with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose." The official were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke Thursday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Police also released photos of a person they say is wanted for questioning in the ambush the day before of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The words on the ammunition may have been a reference to tactics insurance companies use to avoid paying claims. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are bringing Trump's DOGE to Capitol Hill WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s DOGE time at the U.S. Capitol. Billionaire Elon Musk and fellow business titan Vivek Ramaswamy arrived on Capitol Hill for meetings with lawmakers. The two are heading up President-elect Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, with its plans to “dismantle” the federal government. Trump tapped the duo to come up with ways for firing federal workers, cutting government programs and slashing federal regulations — all part of Trump's agenda for a second-term at the White House. House Speaker Mike Johnson said there's going to be “a lot of change” in Washington. Hegseth faces senators' concerns not only about his behavior but also his views on women in combat WASHINGTON (AP) — Pete Hegseth has spent the week on Capitol Hill trying to reassure Republican senators that he is fit to lead President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Defense in the wake of high-profile allegations about excessive drinking and sexual assault. But senators in both parties have also expressed concern about another issue — Hegseth’s frequent comments that women should not serve in frontline military combat jobs. As he meets with senators for a fourth day Thursday, his professional views on women troops are coming under deeper scrutiny. Hegseth said this week that “we have amazing women who serve our military.” Pressed if they should serve in combat, Hegseth said they already do. Hamas official says Gaza ceasefire talks have resumed after weekslong hiatus ISTANBUL (AP) — A Hamas official says that after a weekslong hiatus international mediators have resumed negotiating with the militant group and Israel over a ceasefire in Gaza, and that he was hopeful a deal to end the 14-month war was within reach. Ceasefire negotiations were halted last month when Qatar suspended its talks with mediators from Egypt and the United States over frustration with a lack of progress between Israel and Hamas. But Bassem Naim, an official in Hamas’ political wing, said Thursday in an interview with The Associated Press that there has been a “reactivation” of efforts to end the fighting, release hostages from Gaza and free Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Why the rebel capture of Syria's Hama, a city with a dark history, matters BEIRUT (AP) — One of the darkest moments in the modern history of the Arab world happened more than four decades ago, when then-Syrian President Hafez Assad launched what came to be known as the Hama Massacre. The slaughter was named for the Syrian city where 10,000 to 40,000 people were killed or disappeared in a government attack that began on Feb. 2, 1982, and lasted for nearly a month. Hama was turned into ruins. The memory of the assault and the monthlong siege on the city remains visceral in Syrian and Arab minds. Now Islamist insurgents have captured the city in a moment many Syrians have awaited for over 40 years. France's Macron vows to stay in office till end of term, says he'll name a new prime minister soon PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron has vowed to stay in office until the end of his term in 2027 and announced that he will name a new prime minister within days. In his address to the nation on Thursday, Macron came out fighting, laying blame at the door of his opponents on the far right for bringing down the government of Michel Barnier. He said they chose “not to do but to undo” and that they “chose disorder.” The president also said the far right and the far left had united in what he called “an anti-Republican front.” He said he’ll name a new prime minister within days but gave no hints who that might be. 7.0 earthquake off Northern California prompts brief tsunami warning SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The National Weather Service has canceled its tsunami warning for the U.S. West Coast after there was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. According to the U.S. Geological Survey on Thursday, at least 5.3 million people in California were under a tsunami warning after the earthquake struck. It was felt as far south as San Francisco, where residents felt a rolling motion for several seconds. It was followed by multiple smaller aftershocks. There were no immediate reports of major damage or injury. Yoon replaces the defense minister as South Korea's parliament moves to vote on their impeachments SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s president has replaced his defense minister as opposition parties moved to impeach both men over the stunning-but-brief imposition of martial law that brought armed troops into Seoul streets. Opposition parties are pushing for a vote on motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday evening. They hold 192 seats but need 200 votes for the motion to pass. Yoon’s office said he decided to replace Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun with Choi Byung Hyuk, a retired general who is South Korea’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Kim earlier apologized and said he ordered troops to carry out duties related to martial law. The Foreign Ministry also worked to mitigate the backlash and concern over South Korea's democracy. The US government is closing a women's prison and other facilities after years of abuse and decay WASHINGTON (AP) — The Associated Press has learned that the federal Bureau of Prisons is permanently closing its “rape club” women’s prison in California and will idle six facilities in a sweeping realignment after years of abuse, decay and mismanagement. The agency informed employees and Congress on Thursday that it plans to shutter the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, and its deactivate minimum-security prison camps in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Florida. Staff and inmates are being moved to other facilities. The closures come amid an AP investigation that has uncovered deep, previously unreported flaws within the Bureau of Prisons. From outsider to the Oval Office, bitcoin surges as a new administration embraces crypto NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin burst on the scene after trust had withered in the financial system and Washington’s ability to protect people from it. Now, it’s Washington’s embrace of bitcoin that’s sending it to records. Bitcoin briefly surged above $103,000 after President-elect Donald Trump said he will nominate Paul Atkins, who's seen as friendly to crypto, to be the Securities and Exchange Commission's next chair. The crypto industry, meanwhile, did its part to bring politicians friendly to digital currencies into Washington. It's a twist from bitcoin's early days, when it was lauded as a kind of electronic cash that wouldn’t be beholden to any government or financial institution.
Grab It Before It’s Gone! Why Everyone Wants Intel’s Arc B580 GPU.NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers urged a judge again Friday to throw out his hush money conviction, balking at the prosecution’s suggestion of preserving the verdict by treating the case the way some courts do when a defendant dies. They called the idea “absurd.” The Manhattan district attorney's office is asking Judge Juan M. Merchan to “pretend as if one of the assassination attempts against President Trump had been successful,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in a blistering 23-page response. In court papers made public Tuesday, District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office proposed an array of options for keeping the historic conviction on the books after Trump’s lawyers filed paperwork earlier this month asking for the case to be dismissed. They include freezing the case until Trump leaves office in 2029, agreeing that any future sentence won't include jail time, or closing the case by noting he was convicted but that he wasn't sentenced and his appeal wasn’t resolved because of presidential immunity. Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove reiterated Friday their position that the only acceptable option is overturning his conviction and dismissing his indictment, writing that anything less will interfere with the transition process and his ability to lead the country. The Manhattan district attorney’s office declined comment. It’s unclear how soon Merchan will decide. He could grant Trump’s request for dismissal, go with one of the prosecution’s suggestions, wait until a federal appeals court rules on Trump’s parallel effort to get the case moved out of state court, or choose some other option. In their response Friday, Blanche and Bove ripped each of the prosecution’s suggestions. Halting the case until Trump leaves office would force the incoming president to govern while facing the “ongoing threat” that he’ll be sentenced to imprisonment, fines or other punishment as soon as his term ends, Blanche and Bove wrote. Trump, a Republican, takes office Jan. 20. “To be clear, President Trump will never deviate from the public interest in response to these thuggish tactics,” the defense lawyers wrote. “However, the threat itself is unconstitutional.” The prosecution’s suggestion that Merchan could mitigate those concerns by promising not to sentence Trump to jail time on presidential immunity grounds is also a non-starter, Blanche and Bove wrote. The immunity statute requires dropping the case, not merely limiting sentencing options, they argued. Blanche and Bove, both of whom Trump has tabbed for high-ranking Justice Department positions, expressed outrage at the prosecution’s novel suggestion that Merchan borrow from Alabama and other states and treat the case as if Trump had died. Blanche and Bove accused prosecutors of ignoring New York precedent and attempting to “fabricate” a solution “based on an extremely troubling and irresponsible analogy between President Trump" who survived assassination attempts in Pennsylvania in July and Florida in September “and a hypothetical dead defendant.” Such an option normally comes into play when a defendant dies after being convicted but before appeals are exhausted. It is unclear whether it is viable under New York law, but prosecutors suggested that Merchan could innovate in what’s already a unique case. “This remedy would prevent defendant from being burdened during his presidency by an ongoing criminal proceeding,” prosecutors wrote in their filing this week. But at the same time, it wouldn’t “precipitously discard” the “meaningful fact that defendant was indicted and found guilty by a jury of his peers.” Prosecutors acknowledged that “presidential immunity requires accommodation” during Trump’s impending return to the White House but argued that his election to a second term should not upend the jury’s verdict, which came when he was out of office. Longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution . Other world leaders don’t enjoy the same protection. For example, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on trial on corruption charges even as he leads that nation’s wars in Lebanon and Gaza . Trump has been fighting for months to reverse his May 30 conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records . Prosecutors said he fudged the documents to conceal a $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels to suppress her claim that they had sex a decade earlier, which Trump denies. In their filing Friday, Trump’s lawyers citing a social media post in which Sen. John Fetterman used profane language to criticize Trump’s hush money prosecution. The Pennsylvania Democrat suggested that Trump deserved a pardon, comparing his case to that of President Joe Biden’s pardoned son Hunter Biden, who had been convicted of tax and gun charges . “Weaponizing the judiciary for blatant, partisan gain diminishes the collective faith in our institutions and sows further division,” Fetterman wrote Wednesday on Truth Social. Trump’s hush money conviction was in state court, meaning a presidential pardon — issued by Biden or himself when he takes office — would not apply to the case. Presidential pardons only apply to federal crimes. Since the election, special counsel Jack Smith has ended his two federal cases , which pertained to Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and allegations that he hoarded classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. A separate state election interference case in Fulton County, Georgia, is largely on hold. Trump denies wrongdoing in all. Trump had been scheduled for sentencing in the hush money case in late November. But following Trump’s Nov. 5 election victory, Merchan halted proceedings and indefinitely postponed the former and future president’s sentencing so the defense and prosecution could weigh in on the future of the case. Merchan also delayed a decision on Trump’s prior bid to dismiss the case on immunity grounds. A dismissal would erase Trump’s conviction, sparing him the cloud of a criminal record and possible prison sentence. Trump is the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted criminal to be elected to the office. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
Advancements in DNA technology and a surge of public interest are rekindling hope for breakthroughs in the long-unsolved murder of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey, a case that has remained a haunting mystery for nearly 28 years. As new techniques emerge and fresh attention is drawn to the evidence, many are eager for answers that could finally bring closure to this tragic story. JonBenét, who was found dead in the basement of her Boulder, Colorado, home in 1996, remains frozen in time. Her father, John Ramsey, has endured nearly three decades without justice, answers or his daughter. "JonBenét's still my 6-year-old blond-headed daughter who I love dearly," Ramsey told ABC News. "I did run into one of her little friends on the street who is now, you know, 30 and an adult. And it was, it was a little bit of a shock. This little girl played with JonBenét at our house all the time. And that was a little bit of a jolt to think, wow, that could have been JonBenét." Watch the full story on the "20/20" episode, "Forever Young: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?" featuring a new interview with John Ramsey and never-before-seen footage from the iconic Barbara Walters interview with parents John and Patsy Ramsey. Ramsey, now 81 years old, has renewed hope that his daughter's killer can finally be found. He is confident that advances in DNA technology, including genetic genealogy that has helped to solve several high-profile cold case, are the key to solving this mystery. "Let's do a reverse family tree and see if he had a relative living in Boulder in 1996. The interesting thing about these cold cases," Ramsey said. "The ultimate first arrest came out of nowhere. They were on no one's radar. They've done this horrible crime and nobody said that that guy's a suspect. That's what we're asking the police to do." Over the years, Ramsey expressed frustration with the police for not solving his daughter's case. He was unhappy with being a prime suspect for 12 years and that the department rejected offers of help to find viable evidence.He recently took part in a new Netflix docuseries, "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?" The series dives into lingering mysteries surrounding the tragic case, exploring evidence, interviews and theories that have emerged over the years. Ramsey collaborated with director Joe Berlinger, who aimed to illuminate what he described as one of the most victimized families in American history. "Obviously, he wasn't legally wrongfully convicted, but he was wrongfully convicted," Berlinger said. "And his wife Patsy -- the family were wrongfully convicted in the court of public opinion." The popular docuseries ignited a new wave of interest among viewers. Ramsey is hopeful that recent changes in the Boulder Police Department's leadership and better communication with his family may lead to a resolution in the case. The Boulder police department has addressed the recent scrutiny. Last month, the current police chief released a video statement. "So much of how law enforcement works has changed in the last 30 years," Stephen Redfearn said. "There are a number of things that people have pointed to throughout the years that could have been done better and we acknowledge that as true. However, it is important to emphasize that while we cannot go back to that horrible day in 1996, our goal is to find JonBenét Ramsey's killer." That tragic day in 1996 began in the picturesque Boulder neighborhood where the Ramsey family lived. On Dec. 26, John and Patsy Ramsey woke up to find that JonBenét, a child beauty queen, was missing. A handwritten ransom note demanding $118,000 -- the exact sum of John's bonus that year -- was discovered on the kitchen stairs. Seven hours later, John found his daughter's lifeless body in a small basement room. An autopsy determined JonBenét was sexually assaulted and strangled, and her skull was fractured. Unknown DNA was found under her fingernails and in her underwear. The Ramseys quickly became suspects, even though no evidence connected them to the crime. The family has always denied any involvement in JonBenét's murder. However, the Boulder District Attorney's Office took 12 years to fully exonerate the Ramseys and their son Burke, who was 9 years old when his sister died. As weeks went by without any arrests in the case, a media frenzy began to build, fueled by relentless tabloid images of JonBenét participating in beauty pageants. A number of leads emerged, including a man named John Mark Karr, who confessed to the killing in 2006. However, his DNA did not match the evidence and he was not in Boulder at the time of the murder, so he was eliminated as a suspect. The case remained unsolved. John Ramsey believes that a cloud still hangs over his family, as he thinks there are people in the country who think he and his late wife, Patsy, who died in 2006, are responsible for JonBenét's murder. Investigator Lou Smit, who was initially brought into the case by Boulder County District Attorney Alex Hunter, came to believe early in his investigation that the Ramseys were innocent. He thought that the police should be looking at the possibility of an intruder. "I'm not saying parents don't kill their kids ... parents do kill their children," Smit said in his tapes. "But [ the police ] are trying to say Patsy did it. ... Their actions before, during and after [ JonBenét's death ] are all consistent with innocent people. ... They didn't do it." As the investigation progressed Smit became increasingly concerned that authorities had completely ruled out the chance of an intruder being responsible for JonBenét's death. As a result, they weren't searching for evidence that might support this possibility. Smit continued to maintain that an unidentified intruder was responsible for JonBenét's murder. However, he was running out of time due to his colon cancer diagnosis in 2010. Before Smit died on Aug. 11 of that year, he diligently compiled a detailed list of persons of interest, hoping that his years of investigative work would eventually pay off. Smit passed his files to his surviving children, including a spreadsheet with 887 names of potential suspects to be investigated.That list is extensive, but Smit's family is determined to continue their search. Since his death, the team has cleared several individuals from that list, according to Smit's granddaughter Jessa Van Der Woerd. However, the process is slow due to the time and costs involved in locating each person, obtaining their DNA and testing it. "We've let the killer walk for more than 28 years," John Ramsey said. "I think it's imperative that we investigate every credible suspect that's been provided."
SANDY, Utah, Dec. 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mountain America Credit Union is proud to announce a recent donation of $14,600 to Operation Warm for the 2024 First Down program with Idaho State Athletics. Through the First Down program, the credit union pledged a donation to Operation Warm for every first down completed by the Idaho State University (ISU) football team during the 2024 season. A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link. Mountain America presented a check to Michael Andrews, senior manager of partnerships at Operation Warm, on November 16, 2024. “A new coat does more than just keep a child warm,” said Andrews. “It boosts their confidence and helps them attend school regularly, ready to learn and succeed. We are grateful for Mountain America’s generous support.” With this donation, Mountain America has now contributed a total of $150,000 to Operation Warm through various programs and events across its multistate footprint. Operation Warm’s mission is to provide confidence, warmth, and hope to children in need through the gift of brand-new winter coats. Recently, Mountain America and Operation Warm partnered to provide 300 coats to preschoolers in Pocatello. In Idaho, 12.5% of individuals under age 18 live below the poverty line, making a warm coat a necessity in winter. The impact of a new coat extends beyond warmth, contributing to a child’s overall well-being and readiness to learn. “We are proud to support Operation Warm through our partnership with Idaho State Athletics, helping to provide new coats to children in need,” said Nathan Anderson, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Mountain America. “Seeing the smiles of the children directly impacted by this work is truly heartwarming and reinforces our dedication to this cause.” To learn more about Operation Warm, please visit operationwarm.org . To learn more about Mountain America’s community involvement, visit macu.com/newsroom . About Mountain America Credit Union With more than 1 million members and $20 billion in assets, Mountain America Credit Union helps its members define and achieve their financial dreams. Mountain America provides consumers and businesses with a variety of convenient, flexible products and services, as well as sound, timely advice. Members enjoy access to secure, cutting-edge mobile banking technology, over 100 branches across multiple states, and more than 50,000 surcharge-free ATMs. Mountain America—guiding you forward. Learn more at macu.com . Contact: publicrelations@macu.com , macu.com/newsroomNASHVILLE, Tenn. — Married couples across the U.S. have had access to no-fault divorce for more than 50 years, an option many call crucial to supporting domestic abuse victims and key to preventing already crowded family courts from drowning in complicated divorce proceedings. But some advocates for women worried as old comments from now Vice President-elect JD Vance circulated during the presidential campaign opposing no-fault divorce. After President-elect Donald Trump and Vance won the election, warnings began popping up on social media urging women who might be considering divorce to "pull the trigger" while they still could. Some attorneys posted saying they saw a spike in calls from women seeking divorce consultations. Donald and Ivana Trump pose in May 1988 outside the Federal Courthouse in New York after she was sworn in as a United States citizen. Trump — who is twice-divorced — hasn't championed overhauling the country's divorce laws, but in 2021 Vance lamented that divorce is too easily accessible, as have conservative podcasters and others. "We've run this experiment in real time and what we have is a lot of very, very real family dysfunction that's making our kids unhappy," Vance said during a speech at a Christian high school in California, where he criticized people being able to "shift spouses like they change their underwear." Marriage rates held steady but divorce rates of women age 15 and older declined from 2012 to 2022, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released in October. Despite concerns, even those who want to make divorces harder to get say they don't expect big, swift changes. There is not a national coordinated effort underway. States determine their own divorce laws, so national leaders can't directly change policy. "Even in some of the so-called red states, it hasn't gotten anywhere," said Beverly Willett, co-chair of the Coalition for Divorce Reform, whose group unsuccessfully attempted to convince states to repeal their no-fault divorce laws. A couple exchanges wedding bands Oct. 11, 2018, at City Hall in Philadelphia. Mark A. Smith, a political science professor at the University of Washington, said while many Americans became accustomed to no-fault divorce being an option, Vance's previous comments on making it more difficult to separate from a spouse could help jump-start that effort. "Even though he's not directly proposing a policy, it's a topic that hasn't gotten a ton of discussion in the last 15 years," Smith said. "And so to have a national profile politician talk that way is noteworthy." Meanwhile, Republican Party platforms in Texas and Nebraska were amended in 2022 to call for the removal of no-fault divorce. Louisiana's Republican Party considered something similar this year but declined to do so. A handful of proposals were introduced in conservative-led statehouses over the years, but all immediately stalled after they were filed. In January, Oklahoma Republican Sen. Dusty Deevers introduced legislation that would have removed married couples from filing for divorce on the grounds of incompatibility. Deevers backed the bill after writing a piece declaring no-fault divorce was an "abolition of marital obligation." Sen. JD Vance smiles as his wife Usha Vance applauds Nov. 6 at an election-night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. Similarly, in South Carolina, two Republican lawmakers in 2023 filed a bill that would have required both spouses to file for a no-fault divorce application rather than just one. In South Dakota, a Republican lawmaker attempted to remove irreconcilable difference as grounds for divorce since 2020. None of the sponsors of these bills responded to interview requests from The Associated Press. All are members of their state's conservative Freedom Caucus. Nevertheless, some Democratic lawmakers say they remain worried about the future of no-fault divorce. They point to the U.S. Supreme Court overturning the constitutional right to abortion in 2022 as an example of a long-accepted option that was revoked through a decades-long effort. "When you choose to be silent, you allow for this to creep in," said Democratic South Dakota Rep. Linda Duba. "These are the bills that gain a foothold because you choose to be silent." Before California became the first state to adopt a no-fault divorce option in 1969, married couples had to prove their spouse violated one of the approved "faults" outlined in their state's divorce law or risk a judge denying their divorce, said Joanna Grossman, a law professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Qualified reasons varied from state to state, but largely included infidelity, incarceration or abandonment. Donald and Marla Trump wave to photographers Dec. 20, 1993, as they enter their wedding reception in New York's Plaza Hotel. The system was a particular burden on domestic violence victims, who are often women who could be stuck in dangerous marriages while they try to prove their partner's abuse in court through expensive and lengthy legal proceedings. "If there was any evidence that the couple both wanted to get divorced that was supposed to be denied because divorce was not something you got because you wanted it, it was something you got because you've been wronged in a way that the state thought was significant," Grossman said. To date, every state in the U.S. adopted a no-fault divorce option. However, 33 states still have a list of approved "faults" to file as grounds for divorce — ranging from adultery to felony conviction. In 17 states, married people only have the option of choosing no-fault divorce to end their marriages. Photo Credit: shisu_ka / Shutterstock Marriage—and divorce—in the U.S. today are starkly different than in earlier eras of the country’s history. A series of economic, legal, and social shifts reshaped marriage in the second half of the 20th century. More women began working outside of the home in the post-World War II era, which provided avenues to financial security and independence outside of marriage. Greater emphasis on postsecondary educational attainment and career development have led young people to wait longer to enter marriage. States began to adopt no-fault divorce laws throughout the 1960s and 1970s that made it easier to end a marriage. Meanwhile, changing social and cultural attitudes have made it more common for couples to cohabitate, combine finances, and raise children prior to getting married—or without getting married at all. These trends have contributed to a decline in the overall number of marriages and to delays in when people get married for the first time. In the U.S., there are currently only 6.5 marriages per 1,000 people each year , compared to 10.9 five decades ago. For those who do choose to get married, the age of first marriage is happening later. As late as the early 1970s, the median age for a first marriage in the U.S. was just 22. By 2018, that figure had increased to 28.8. These shifts have also affected how likely married couples are to stay together. As women entered the workforce in the mid-20th century and feminism and the sexual revolution took hold, rates of divorce rose quickly throughout the 1960s and 1970s. From 1960 to 1980, the divorce rate per 1,000 people in the U.S. more than doubled from 2.2 to 5.2. But the rate began to fall steadily after 1980, and as of 2018, the rate of divorce had dropped to 2.9 per 1,000 people. The link between rates of divorce and age at first marriage has been borne out over time, but it also explains geographic differences in rates of divorce. Today, most of the states with the lowest rates of divorce are also those with a higher median age for marriage. States like New Jersey, New York, California, and Massachusetts all stand out for having fewer than 10% of adults divorced and an age at first marriage above 30. One exception to this is Utah, which has the lowest overall median age for first marriage at 25.5 but also the third-lowest share of divorced adults at 9%, likely due in part to the state’s strong religious ties to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In contrast, Maine and Nevada lead all states in the share of the population currently divorced at 13.9% and 13.8%, respectively. And at the local level, many of the cities with the highest levels of divorce are found in Florida, Appalachia, and the Southwest. The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey . To determine the most divorced locations, researchers at ChamberOfCommerce.org calculated the percentage of adults currently divorced. In the event of a tie, the location with the higher percentage of adults currently separated was ranked higher. To improve relevance, only cities with at least 100,000 residents were included. Additionally, cities were grouped into cohorts based on population size: small (100,000–149,999), midsize (150,000–349,999), and large (350,000 or more). Here are the most divorced cities in the U.S. Photo Credit: Jacob Boomsma / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock Photo Credit: photo.ua / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Jonny Trego / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Tupungato / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Kevin J King / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Galina Savina / Shutterstock Photo Credit: f11photo / Shutterstock Photo Credit: CHARLES MORRA / Shutterstock Photo Credit: LHBLLC / Shutterstock Photo Credit: Valiik30 / Shutterstock Photo Credit: turtix / Shutterstock Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.Texas weighs social media bans for minors as schools and police face challenges
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Rethinking our priorities Official figures say Pakistan’s literacy stands at around 60% and is considerably lower The government has once again proved that Pakistan is essentially a state obsessed with security – by placing before the National Assembly a new bill tackling matters of national safety. While such bills would not be opposed by anyone if they truly helped end terrorism and sectarianism, the bill in question was placed before the House under somewhat questionable conditions. In the first place, it was tabled just as the National Assembly session was about to end and there were very few members left in the House. As such, almost no MNA read the bill which has now been passed on to a committee. The bill resembles the one put in place in early 2015 following the APS disaster of December 2014. At the time, we were told the law was necessary given the prevailing situation. Most people accepted that indeed such measures needed to come in place given the massacre that had occurred. One of the more questionable clauses of that law, and it is believed also of the new law now tabled, is that someone can be arrested on mere suspicion that they will become engaged in terrorist activities. This gives a huge margin of action to the authorities to act as they please. This includes political opponents and other persons who are not seen as friends of the state. The bill, like the one in 2016, has a ‘sunset clause’ which means that it will automatically expire after two years and fall into non-existence. We ask what the government hopes to achieve through this measure and if it is the correct way to handle terrorism. We did not see any end to terrorism after the 2015 action and Nacta, the body set up at that time, has been largely ineffective in doing its job. Terror continues across the country and it cannot end until the root causes are addressed and groups engaged in it in some way banished or reformed through measures of various kinds. This has been the course adopted by other nations and it is a course we should learn to follow. The question also is why Pakistan is so centred on security and not on other issues. Taking up these issues could make the state more secure by improving the lives of its people and giving them a better way to live. If they had this opportunity, perhaps fewer young people would be tempted to join extremist organisations or take up guns in their name. This is today happening all over the country and the arrival of newer radicalised groups has only heightened the level of violence the country faces today. On the other hand, we have done very little to improve the rate of educational success in our country. Pakistan ranks amongst the lowest countries in the world in its ability to provide basic literacy to its people. It has today fallen behind even many sub-Saharan African states and is by a considerable margin the least successful country in South Asia in terms of the ability to educate its people. For example, Bangladesh has a literacy rate of over 66 per cent. Pakistan’s literacy, according to official figures, stands at around 60 per cent and is considerably lower according to many organisations which monitor education in the country. Literacy after all is often measured simply by the ability to sign one’s name or to read a single headline from a newspaper. In some cases, even this criterion is dropped. In contrast, Vietnam, a country which also faces poverty and economic distress, has been able to raise its literacy rate to 96 per cent and is nearing the 100 per cent mark. Both Bangladesh and Vietnam, the countries with the clearest examples of success despite economic disarray have also focused on providing women with education and training people in vocational skills. This is important in a number of ways. If there is a skill-based labour force, other countries would bring their investment to Pakistan and provide much-needed employment. At the moment, in our country, people are in some cases unable to feed their families, leading to the stunting of nearly 50 per cent of children and the removal of some from schools or colleges. Some reports suggest that Pakistan’s literacy rate has fallen over the last two years rather than increased. This of course is immensely disturbing as is the poor quality of literacy and education we can offer even when people are successful in accessing it for their children. The same is true of other fields such as health and social welfare. We have transformed ourselves into a national security state and have not really been successful, even in providing the safety net people need to live their lives. This has been the pattern followed in Pakistan since its inception in 1947. Through the periods of repeated martial laws – and Pakistan has seen at least four dictatorial regimes lead the country as well as multiple hybrid regimes – there has been a focus on national security rather than on national welfare. Only if people are empowered and able to choose how they live their lives can there be any real security and any real harmony in the country. We are failing badly on this front. The failure is highlighted by how the latest bill has been tabled. Bills as important as those which deal with security need to be discussed not only in parliament but also at various civil forums. This has also been pointed out by Amnesty International in clear-cut terms. Pakistan needs to rethink the direction in which it is headed and how it is managing its affairs. The rate of success has not been very good and we must consider why we have fallen so far behind other countries on the globe. Pakistan has resources and some brilliant minds, including amongst its young people. There is no reason why these cannot be used to build the country and take it forward. Our obsession with national security, however, takes away from us this ability and leaves us less able to succeed amongst the family of nations as they move forward and try to gain a standard which leaves us able to feed, educate and provide basic health care and welfare for all our people each month in the years to come. The writer is a freelance columnist and former newspaper editor. She can be reached at: kamilahyat@hotmail.com
FIA registers cases against journalists, vloggers under PECA Case against Singh alleges his content, between November 24 and 27, 2024, sought to incite violent actions ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cybercrime Wing has initiated legal action against several journalists and vloggers for their coverage of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) protest on November 24. The cases, registered under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), accuse the individuals of spreading fabricated narratives against state institutions and inciting public unrest, FIA sources said. Among those named in the cases are US-based journalist Ahmad Noorani and others including Harmit Singh, Imran Khatana, Rizwan Ahmed Khan, Hasnain Rafiq, Salman Durrani, Maryam Shafqat Malik and Abdul Qadir. The allegations include promoting misinformation, attempting to provoke violence, and creating divisions among state institutions, the FIA maintained. “Harmit Singh, in particular, has been accused of using his Twitter platform to promote anti-state narratives. The case against Singh alleges that his content, shared between November 24 and 27, 2024, sought to incite violent actions, instill fear, and fuel ethnic and provincial discord for the political gain of certain factions. The FIA describes this as a seditious act,” the sources added. While, the FIA Cybercrime Rawalpindi has arrested a citizen, Ilyas Awan, allegedly involved in anti-state propaganda on social media, says the agency’s spokesperson. The FIA contended that some journalists and vloggers misused their platforms to disseminate false narratives about the protest and its aftermath, undermining state institutions and public confidence. The PECA Act addresses cybercrimes, including the spread of false information, defamation, and sedition. Under this legislation, those found guilty can face significant penalties, including imprisonment. The government has emphasised its commitment to countering misinformation campaigns that it claims aim to destabilise the country. Media advocacy groups and journalists’ associations have expressed concern over the FIA’s actions, viewing them as an attempt to stifle press freedom. They argue that journalists have a right to report on political developments, including protests, without fear of retaliation. Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Afzal Butt and Secretary General Arshad Ansari, in their statement, have condemned the government’s policy of involving them (journalists) in criminal cases to stifle freedom of expression. “We will fight those who try to asphyxiate freedom of media,” Butt and Ansari said.Researchers launch “moonshot” to cure blindness through eye transplants
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