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List could be released as soon as Tuesday after deadline for objections to unsealing of names passes midnight MondayNearly 200 names connected to the Jeffrey Epstein-Ghislaine Maxwell sex trafficking conspiracy could be released by a New York judge as soon as Tuesday, exposing or confirming the identities of dozens of associates of the disgraced financier that until now have only been known as John and Jane Does in court papers.A deadline for objections to the unsealing of the names passes at midnight on Monday, nearly nine years after victim Virginia Giuffre filed a single defamation claim against Maxwell, daughter of the late British press baron Robert Maxwell, in 2015, that in turn produced the names in legal depositions. Continue reading...

Given the state of the world, it's no surprise so many of us are turning to spooky stories as a form of escapeEverybody seems to be talking about ghosts right now. I turn up to dinners with friends, we're talking about ghosts. I sit in the office, the conversation is dominated by ghosts again. I'm scrolling through Facebook groups and reading ghost stories that I then try to tell my boyfriend about (he ignores me). It feels as if ghosts are suddenly having a moment, a strange little resurgence into the mainstream. I think ghosts may be in vogue.As for how and why ghosts have started to creep into polite conversation, there is a clear culprit. A few months ago the Amazon-owned podcast network Wondery published Ghost Story, a seven-part series hosted by the journalist Tristan Redman. Ghost Story focuses on a murder that occurred two generations ago in Redman's wife's family and, by absolute coincidence, took place in the house next door to where Redman grew up. Continue reading...

Man, identified in local media as Jason Carter, died in Maui after rescue attempt, police sayA shark attack has killed a man at a spot popular with swimmers and surfers in Hawaii despite a rescue attempt, local police said.In a statement Maui police said a 39-year-old man had died after being brought back to shore by rescuers at a beach area off the Hana Highway in Paia on the island on Maui. Continue reading...

Brazilian-born Nemuel DePaula wants his Lenita flower truck business to blossom in its brick-and-mortar locationNemuel DePaula has never been afraid of big pivots. The Brazil native immigrated to Boston at age 10, started his own graphic design business, Grita, while still in high school, and moved himself and the business across the country to Los Angeles in 2013. Four years later, DePaula took a gamble again with Lenita, the part-time mobile flower shop he launched and named after his mother.DePaula, 35, has been captivated by flowers since childhood. The first thing I ever stole was a rose," he said with a laugh as he recalled the perfect bloom he snipped from his neighbor's garden and slipped to his mom as a small child. Over the years, his aesthetic sensibilities evolved from purloined roses to less conventional species. His latest love is the graffiti anthurium", a tropical flower with a natural paint-splattered effect that resembles a bloodied orchid - but in a cool way. Continue reading...

When asked about the cause of the civil war, she failed to mention slavery once. That is no surpriseNikki Haley's feigning of staggering ignorance about the cause of the US civil war unintentionally revealed her quandary in the Republican party. It was not a gaffe. Though it was a stumble, it was not a mistake, but a message she has delivered for years and that has served her well until now. Her carefully crafted and closely memorized garble was a deracinated version of an old lie, which she had used before to attempt to mollify hostile camps in order to skid by. Some in the past praised her evasive formula as governor of South Carolina as her finest moment. It lifted her star. Yet one simple question instantly produced panicky rapid eye movements that are the telltale sign of a person desperately cornered, followed by an unstoppable stream of blather that she hoped would make it all evaporate into a meaningless ether but instead this time slid her into an abyss. Her performance, the most memorable of her entire career, was so devastating that even Ron DeSantis, the paragon of political aphasia, in the most cogent remark of his campaign, indeed his life, commented: Yikes." Nikki Haley turned Ron DeSantis woke.What was the cause of the United States civil war?" a man asked Haley at a campaign town hall in North Conway, New Hampshire. She reacted as if she were being physically threatened. Haley immediately turned her back to the questioner, breathed fast and heavy into the microphone, and walked quickly away. When she swiveled to face the crowd, she did not speak at first. Gaining her composure, she replied with an accusatory edge: Well, don't come with an easy question." Continue reading...

Ex-president has made increasingly conspiratorial and authoritarian broadsides against prosecutors pursuing himAs Donald Trump faces 91 felony counts with four trials slated for 2024, including two tied to his drives to overturn his 2020 election loss, his attacks on prosecutors are increasingly conspiratorial and authoritarian in style and threaten the rule of law, say former justice department officials.The former US president's vitriolic attacks on a special counsel and two state prosecutors as well as some judges claim in part that the charges against Trump amount to election interference" since he's seeking the presidency again, and that presidential immunity" protects Trump for his multiple actions to subvert Joe Biden's 2020 victory. Continue reading...

From the economy to the climate crisis to abortion and US support for Ukraine, the presidential race is likely to encompass some key themesWhether or not the 2024 US presidential election presents the expected Joe Biden v Donald Trump rematch, much will be at stake.From the future of reproductive rights to the chances of meaningful action on climate change, from the strength of US support for Ukraine in its war with Russia to the fate of democracy in America itself, existential issues are set to come to the fore. Continue reading...

After losing four of five games from a 10-1 start, the once-mighty Philadelphia Eagles look finished. But a fellow mid-Atlantic club is still very much in the Super Bowl huntWith 2m40s left in the fourth quarter and the 11-4 Philadelphia Eagles and 3-12 Arizona Cardinals knotted at 31-all, a disgusted AJ Brown walked off the field shaking his head at his team's lackluster offensive playcalling. The Eagles, already in field goal range a reckless onside-kick attempt gifted them winning field position, went soft. On 1st-and-20 they dialed up a designed run for quarterback Jalen Hurts despite having one of the league's most effective rushers in D'Andre Swift. Four-yard gain. Hurts ran it again on second down, this time for a three-yard loss. Even saddled with a 3rd-and-19, most teams closing in on an NFC East title and eying return Super Bowl appearance with last year's MVP runner-up under center, would take a shot. Not the Eagles. They called a tunnel screen to running back Kenneth Gainwell that gained, well, only four yards.It was a pitiful series from a playcalling standpoint. Their conservative tack against an overmatched Cardinals team that had nothing to lose after being trailing 21-6 is a quintessential example of playing not to lose. Continue reading...

The new film about the British humanitarian who rescued 669 Czech Jewish children sticks to a feelgood script, and misses the more compelling realityBy the time he died in 2015 at the age of 106, Nicholas Winton was the nearest British equivalent to a secular saint.His basic story has been told many times. In late 1938, everyone in Prague was braced for an imminent German invasion. When a friend asked Winton to come and witness the developing humanitarian crisis for himself, he set about organising a series of eight Kindertransports, which eventually brought 669 Czech Jewish children to safety in Britain. Continue reading...

The tree's owner handed down the secret of the world's best Slovenian walnut roll - and a culture of safeguarding all lifeMy grandmother loved baking and was, therefore, an excellent baker. I can still see her massaging flour, sugar, eggs, yeast, butter and milk into dough and injecting the pastry with apricot jam to make buhteljni. I remember devouring her apple pies, pear pies, blueberry strudels, half-moon-shaped vanilla biscuits called kifeljki, quark rolls generously topped with cream, and fried yoghurt pastries, known as mike (little mice), while always wanting more. I can still hear her saying that to her, a sustainable farmer, baking was the closest she could get to the world of art". I regret never telling her that even though she wasn't graced with the life of an artist, she was nonetheless weaving something larger than her: a culture.Maybe she understood what she was doing after all. Once, she instructed me to never follow her recipes, but instead to adapt them however I saw fit. A culture, she was essentially saying, should be modified in line with the tastes and needs of the times. Continue reading...

The first-term senator said on Meet the Press that comments about him and his family had a negative effect on his mental healthSocial media made John Fetterman's battle with mental depression last year even more difficult, the Democratic US senator from Pennsylvania said Sunday.Fetterman said the comments on social media about him and his family played a role in the depression which sent him to a hospital for six weeks in February. It's an accelerant, absolutely," he said. Continue reading...

With Denmark's Queen Magrethe abdicating, Mary may come to fulfil an imaginative role as a local queen for Australians when her husband Prince Frederik accedes to the throneThe new year 2024 has begun with Queen Margrethe II of Denmark handing in a shock abdication. After 52 years of monarching, the sovereign of the wealthy little kingdom in the north has called it quits.World citizens who have never known another Danish queen - or, indeed, maybe have never known that a prosperous parliamentary social democracy in Europe had a queen at all - are now confronted with a sudden upset in the formal dinner seating. A succession is taking place - fortunately, without the formal public oiling of the new monarch, as is the British way.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

Sarah Matthews, Cassidy Hutchinson and Alyssa Farah Griffin insist Trump's behavior would be worse if he wins second termThe re-election of Donald Trump in 2024 could end American democracy as we know it", according to three women who worked for him in the White House during his chaotic term in office.All three gave testimony to the US House committee investigating Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat as well as the 6 January Capitol attack staged by his supporters. And they warned in an unprecedented television interview on Sunday that time was short to prevent a second Trump administration in which they insist his behavior would be much worse. Continue reading...

Over 300,000 people were on track to cross as Biden makes urgent efforts to curb migrant flows that have become political liabilityMore than 300,000 people were on track to cross the US-Mexico border in December without authorization and are being processed by American immigration officials, a tally that sets the latest monthly record, according to government figures obtained by CBS.The number of crossings, averaging roughly 8,400 apprehensions a day by US border agents, comes amid urgent efforts by the Joe Biden White House to curb migrant flows that have become a domestic political liability for him as he seeks re-election in 2024. Continue reading...

Man fatally shot his wife and their sons before dying by suicide in a suburban New York home, according to policeA police sergeant, his wife and their two sons - ages 10 and 12 - were found dead in a suburban home in New York in what police said was a triple murder-suicide.Watson Morgan, 49, a sergeant with the Bronxville police department, fatally shot his wife, Ornela Morgan, 43, and their sons before dying by suicide, police said. They were discovered just past midnight Saturday at the family's home in Clarkstown - 18 miles north of Manhattan - after Morgan failed to show up for work at the police department in nearby Bronxville.The Associated Press contributed reportingIn the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...

After a lifetime of activism, a son of Jesse Jackson marks his first year as a politician representing IllinoisJonathan Jackson's eyes brim with tears as he recalls the 1984 campaign of his father, Jesse, to become the United States' first Black president. To see my great-grandmother, who couldn't read or write, vote," the US congressman says, his voice faltering. It let me see how meaningful it was to be able to vote."Jackson is a lifelong political activist who has come to elected office late in the game. He was a spokesperson for the Rainbow Push Coalition, an international human and civil rights organisation founded by his father. In Chicago the younger Jackson fought against the closure of public schools and worked on false-confessions cases involving the police. More recently, he co-sponsored a House resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Continue reading...

Democrat speaks on supreme court stepping in to adjudicate Maine and Colorado rulings that removed Trump from ballotsSupreme court justice Clarence Thomas must recuse himself from ruling on Donald Trump's eligibility for the 2024 presidential election, a prominent Democrat said Sunday, warning that the leading Republican candidate is seeking to become a political martyr" as he pursues a second presidency.Maryland congressman Jamie Raskin was speaking ahead of the nation's highest court stepping in to adjudicate recent state rulings in Maine and Colorado that struck the former president from the general election primaries under the US constitution's 14th amendment insurrection clause. Continue reading...

A blizzard of confetti in the early 90s was supposed to help cleanse an area known for its porn theaters and peep showsOn 31 December 1992, armchair revelers tuned to CBS for the annual New Year's Eve festivities, broadcast live from New York. The Cheers actor and emcee for the night Jay Thomas volleyed hosting duties to Fame actor Nia Peeples, who stood atop a building in nearby Times Square.[It's] Times Square ... some of the men are women and some of the women are men so be careful who you pet out there," Thomas gruffly warned Peeples, with more than a dose of transphobia and disdain for sex workers. Continue reading...

Doctors told Kentucky woman she would need quadruple amputation to save her life after kidney stone infection spreadA Kentucky woman who unexpectedly learned she would lose her legs and arms during what she thought would be a relatively routine bout with a kidney stone is confronting her plight by focusing on what she still has.I'm just so happy to be alive," Lucinda Cindy" Mullins - who's raising two sons with her husband - recently told the Kentucky news station WLEX. I get to see my kids. I get to see my family. I get to have my time with my husband. Continue reading...

Authorities say cause of the explosion has not been determined and they didn't know whether victims were relatedAuthorities in Michigan say four people have died and two others were injured in a house explosion 45 miles west of Detroit that could be heard from miles away and destroyed the home entirely, leaving only the basement intact.Police said six people were in the home. Four of those at the home died at the scene, and two others were hospitalized in critical condition. They added that they had not determined the cause of the explosion - which occurred about 3.30pm Saturday - and did not know if the victims were related.The Associated Press contributed reporting Continue reading...

Shenna Bellows is latest politician to be victim of fake emergency call to police with the intent they will show up at a residenceA fake emergency call to police resulted in officers responding Friday night to the home of Maine's secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, just a day after she removed Donald Trump from the state's presidential primary ballot under the US constitution's insurrection clause.She becomes the latest elected politician to become a target of swatting, which involves making a phone call to emergency services with the intent that a large first responder presence, including Swat teams, will show up at a residence. Continue reading...

Potential trial delays mean the former president could spend less time in courtroom and more time on the campaign trailWhen Donald Trump was indicted in multiple criminal cases this summer, the conventional wisdom was that the former US president could spend vast amounts of time during the height of the 2024 presidential campaign stuck in courtrooms for back-to-back trials in New York, Florida and Washington.But the reality is that with the federal 2020 election interference case on hold pending appeals, and repeated delays pushing the classified documents case behind schedule by several months, for instance, Trump may find himself in courtrooms far less than expected. Continue reading...

Mainstream music's take-up of the format has led to soaring demand. But beware a trend that drives out indie labels and drives up pricesAt first, it looked like it might be a momentary revolt against the digital future that would inevitably fade away: a rebellion based on plastic, cardboard and century-old technology that was simply too quaint to last. But after at least 15 years of growth, the renaissance of old-fashioned vinyl still seems to be alive and well. This Christmas was surely a case in point: thousands of us will have unwrapped records, the hardware that plays them, or both.In 2022, 5.5m vinyl records were bought in the UK, the largest volume of sales since 1990. Over the first nine months of last year, British vinyl sales increased 13% year on year. The retail chain HMV has just returned to its famous premises on Oxford Street in central London: ceremonially opened in 1921 by Sir Edward Elgar, recently occupied by one of those irksome faux-American sweet shops, but now back in business as an updated version of its former self. It sells a lot more than records, but has set aside space for a mountain of vinyl, marketed to a younger customer base" rather than the stereotype of nostalgic dads with money to burn.John Harris is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

A victory in 2023 in Alabama after a supreme court ruling may be short-lived as three cases pose a dire threat to voting rightsAs 2023 comes to a close, the Voting Rights Act is facing a series of dire threats that could significantly weaken the landmark civil rights law.A suite of three different pending cases could gut the ability of private plaintiffs to challenge the Voting Rights Act, make it harder to challenge discriminatory election systems, and limit the Voting Rights Act's protections in areas where a single racial minority doesn't constitute a majority. Continue reading...

Even amid the despair that haunts our world, good can come out of evil. We need to believe that, for the sake of our future

Winner of the MacArthur genius' grant in 2023 has forged his own style in San Francisco while often subverting stereotypes of hula itselfFor Patrick Makuakne, hula isn't just a way to preserve his Native Hawaiian heritage. It's also a way to create something new.As the visionary leader of the San Francisco-based hula school and dance company N Lei Hulu I Ka Wkiu since 1985, Makuakne has forged his own style of hula that blends traditional movements and chants with contemporary music, costumes and themes such as colonialism, sovereignty and gender fluidity - while often subverting stereotypes about hula itself. Continue reading...

I trust the Guardian to illuminate what's really happening as America faces an election in which one of the two likely candidates engaged in an attempted coupThe reason I write a column for the Guardian is the same reason I read it daily: I trust it.Not just the facts it conveys but also its judgment about what to convey - the stories it believes worthy of reporting, and doing it in ways that illuminate what's really happening.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. His newest book, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, is out now. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com Continue reading...

Accusations of rape against the actor have divided the nation, with some referring to him as the last monstre sacre'On 20 December, during a 135-minute-long interview on French television, dedicated to topics such as the new law on immigration, the future bill on assisted dying, the war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict, Emmanuel Macron was asked about Gerard Depardieu. France's president could have chosen to be cautious and not comment on a case that has divided France. It would probably have been wiser to have remained silent, but Macron doesn't do caution; he speaks his mind.You will never see me taking part in a manhunt," he said. As for stripping the actor of the Legion d'honneur, a procedure recently started by his culture minister Rima Abdul Malak, Macron replied, looking straight at the interviewer: The order of the Legion d'honneur is not a moral order." His culture minister had got ahead of herself". Macron talked about his admiration for the actor, adding that Depardieu had made France proud". The backlash was immediate. Continue reading...

PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf pledged to outline their plans by the year's end but details remain murkyThe concept of peace in our golfing time was always more interesting than the level of detail required to turn that dream into a reality. The sporting world was rocked by the announcement on 6 June that the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund would combine to form a new entity. Vitriol attached to LIV's march on to the scene would supposedly vanish on the basis those controlling the elite game had decided to kiss and make up.Another date, 31 December, became key. The parties had identified the end of 2023 as the cut-off point to turn a framework agreement into something binding. This always looked a hugely optimistic target. Continue reading...

Despite Rishi Sunak using his girls to show his grasp of women's rights, he still brushed James Cleverly's spiking gag asideIn his time in office, Rishi Sunak has done much to popularise an intensifier favoured by men wanting to advertise their commitment to women's interests while effacing any earlier indifference: As a father of daughters."Without his in-house epiphanies, Sunak might never have understood, as a father to daughters", the need for girls to feel safe walking around in the evening or to be educated to the same extent as boys. Which is disturbing, but still. Better late, etc. His daughters are credited, too, in Sunak's tribute to the Lionesses' victories and with - women's rights are personal to me" - his appreciating the need for women's single-sex spaces. Continue reading...

Special counsel Jack Smith says in filing that suggestion Trump cannot be held accountable for crimes threatens the country'Special counsel Jack Smith urged a federal appeals court Saturday to reject former president Donald Trump's claims that he is immune from prosecution, saying the suggestion that he cannot be held to account for crimes committed in office threatens the democratic and constitutional foundation" of the country.The filing from Smith's team was submitted before arguments next month on the legally untested question of whether a former president can be prosecuted for acts made while in the White House. Continue reading...

Central coast officials warn of 20ft waves while San Francisco Bay Area braces for 26-30ft wavesCalifornia's coastal communities, already battered by powerful swells from Pacific storms on Friday, faced another round of towering waves and possible flooding on Saturday.The National Weather Service in Los Angeles forecast significant flooding in low-lying coastal areas with powerful waves and strong rip currents posing an exceptional risk" of drowning and damage to structures like piers and jetties. Continue reading...

On Saturday, Kaine joined chorus of Democrats criticizing Biden for going around Congress and demanded an explanationVirginia senator Tim Kaine has added his voice to a rising chorus within the Democratic party questioning the Biden administration's legislatively unconstrained transfer of US munitions to Israel.In a news release on Saturday, the Democratic senator - a member of the Senate armed services committee - said weapons transfers must come under congressional oversight. Continue reading...

Sally Snowman waxed philosophical about her 20 years tending the lighthouse on Little Brewster Island in MassachusettsSally Snowman, the last remaining official lighthouse keeper in the US, retires this weekend from her post looking after the first lighthouse built in North America, on a tiny island in Boston harbour, in what would later become the United States.Snowman, 72, has been looking after Boston Light Beacon on Little Brewster Island for two decades, and it's now being sold to a private owner. The arrangement - the new owner will be required to preserve it - comes almost 60 years after it was designated a national landmark and government funding was secured to keep it staffed, making it the last staffed lighthouse in the country. Continue reading...

Maine and Colorado have said he is ineligible under the 14th amendment due to his actions during the January 6 Capitol attackDonald Trump is reportedly expected to file legal challenges early next week to rulings in Maine and Colorado knocking him off primary ballots amid mounting pressure on US supreme court justices to rule on whether his actions on 6 January 2021 constitutionally exclude him from seeking a second term in the White House.The New York Times said that Trump's legal moves could come as early as Tuesday. Continue reading...

Brought together by a Bay Area volunteer program, Nathaniel Todd and Bruce Armstrong found support and solace in each otherBruce Armstrong thought it was going to be an awkward call.It was the summer of 2020, and the San Francisco venture capitalist had responded to a newspaper ad placed by Miracle Messages, a Bay Area non-profit seeking volunteers to alleviate the social isolation of people experiencing homelessness. Continue reading...

The Los Angeles sheriff's department (LASD) released body-camera footage on Friday of an officer fatally shooting Niani Finlayson, 27, who had called 911 for help during a domestic violence incident.The footage from the 4 December encounter showed that deputy Ty Shelton shot Finlayson four times within roughly three seconds of entering her home.The killing in Lancaster, a city in north LA county, sparked national outrage last week, with civil rights activists questioning why deputies failed to de-escalate the conflict and instead used fatal force against a woman who had sought their assistance and was a victim of abuse.In a statement Friday, LASD said the deputy, whom the department previously identified as Shelton, had been removed from the field as an investigation continued, in line with standard policy

In 1965, police publicly raided a sanctioned drag ball, inadvertently raising awareness of police brutality against the LGBTQ+ communityAs 2024 draws near, LGBTQ+ activists are taking stock of a traumatic year for the queer community. Lawmakers across the country introduced hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ laws, with particular emphasis on trans people. Now, as queer folks are looking toward hope and change in the New Year, they are reflecting on the past resilience of their community.On New Year's Day 1965, a group of drag queens and gay activists held a drag ball at California Hall in San Francisco. They strutted in, dressed in their finest, ready to dance and celebrate the promise of a new year. It was a historic evening: it would be the first time in American history that a group of Christian ministers would publicly sponsor and host an event for queer people. However, by the end of a night that would come to be known as San Francisco's Stonewall, police would raid the ball, which had more than 600 people in attendance, make arrests, and inadvertently raise awareness of the plight of queer people and overpolicing. Continue reading...

To help you look back, here are 10 memorable moments from the year in patriarchy, from Spain's reckoning with sexism to Taylor Swift's takeover2023 was the hottest year on record. And it wasn't just a year of extreme weather - the political climate also became more heated, with the far-right gaining traction around the world. In the US, Republicans banned books, censored discussions of gender identity, and tried their best to prosecute any woman who dared to so much think of having an abortion. In Italy, Giorgia Meloni's far-right government went on a crusade to erode LGBTQ+ rights. In Afghanistan, two years of oppressive Taliban rule have resulted in what some activists are terming gender apartheid.' From Kabul to Kentucky, it feels like we went backwards in 2023 when it comes to the rights of women and minorities.While it's been a bad year politically for women, things have been a little brighter in popular culture. 2023 was a banner year for female sports with events such as the Women's Six Nations, the Women's World Cup and the women's Ashes notching up record viewing figures. It was also a big year for women in film, with Barbie leading the charge: Greta Gerwig's feminist take on the plastic, anatomically incorrect doll, topped $1bn in global box office ticket sales and spawned approximately 9 million thinkpieces. As one viral tweet noted, we've all got a little Barbie in us (the microplastics). Continue reading...

An ice chunk broke loose from shore, stranding 122 winter anglers 30ft from shore until first responders were able to evacuate themMore than 100 people stranded while fishing on an ice chunk that broke free on a Minnesota lake were rescued on Friday, authorities said.The anglers were on an ice floe in the south-eastern area of Upper Red Lake in Beltrami county - about 200 miles (322km) north-west of Minneapolis - when it broke loose from the shoreline. Continue reading...