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Showing posts from January, 2023

Three dead, four injured in LA shooting, police say, marking latest mass shooting in California

    Three people were killed and four others wounded in a shooting at a short-term rental home in an upscale Los Angeles neighborhood early Saturday morning, police said. The shooting occurred about 2:30 a.m. in the Beverly Crest neighborhood. This is at least the sixth mass shooting in California this month. Sgt. Frank Preciado of the Los Angeles Police Department said earlier Saturday that the three people killed were inside a vehicle. Two of the four victims were taken in private vehicles to area hospitals and two others were transported by ambulance, police spokesperson Sgt. Bruce Borihanh said. Investigators were trying to determine if there was a party at the rental home or what type of gathering was occurring, Borihanh said. Borihanh said police have no information on suspects. With the shooting over, the block was sectioned off as investigators scoured for evidence. The early Saturday morning shooting comes on top of a massacre at a dance hall in a Los Angeles suburb...

South Korea, Japan grapple with heavy snow chaos, delays

  South Korea -- Frigid winter weather gripped East Asia for the second straight day on Wednesday, causing several deaths and multiple injuries in Japan and a scramble for flights out of South Korea's resort island of Jeju following delays by snowstorms. Heavy snow and record cold temperatures brought widespread disruptions in Japan. South Korea’s Ministry of the Interior and Safety didn’t immediately report any major damage or injuries from subzero temperatures and icy conditions that have affected most of the country since Tuesday. But at least eight roads and 10 sea routes remained closed as of Wednesday afternoon. About 140 homes in capital Seoul and nearby regions reported busted water pressure pumps or pipes as temperatures dipped to around minus 15 to minus 20 degrees Celsius (5 degrees to minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit) across the mainland. A man died in Oita, southern Japan, after being hit by a fallen tree and two more deaths in the northern prefecture of Niiga...

Protester killed, trooper shot at Atlanta's proposed 'Cop City' training site

  A man is dead and a Georgia state trooper injured Wednesday after law enforcement officers attempted to move protesters from the site of a controversial proposed public safety training facility near Atlanta. Activists have been occupying the area they call "Cop City" since late 2021 in an attempt to halt the project. Officers from several agencies were clearing people out of the area early Wednesday when the shootings happened, the Associated Press reported. "One person fired shots at law enforcement. Law enforcement fired back," the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said on Twitter. "A Georgia State Trooper was hit and taken to the hospital and is in surgery. One man was killed." Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said on Twitter he and his family are "praying for this brave Trooper and public safety officers across all law enforcement agencies today." According to a statement  released by the Altanta Community Press Collective, which has supported the...

Do mass shootings cause more mass shootings? Research is divided.

  Two   mass shootings  in California last week that killed   dozens of   people   in public spaces, as well as a third attack days earlier that killed six family members in their home, have again raised questions about whether such violent incidents inspire new ones. Data on mass public shootings going back to 1966 suggests such attacks are becoming more frequent, said James Densley, co-founder of the Violence Project, a nonprofit research center. But it’s not yet clear if shootings that come close together in time are intertwined. "You find even in random simulations, there are times when there’s a cluster and times when there are not," said James Alan Fox, a criminology professor at Northeastern University who serves on USA TODAY’s Board of Contributors. Are mass shootings happening more often? The frequency of fatal mass shootings has increased from 23 a year in 2010 to 27 a year through the end of 2022, based on five-year averages of dat...

Another major HIV vaccine trial fails

  The only HIV vaccine in a late-stage trial has failed, researchers announced Wednesday, dealing a significant blow to the effort to control the global HIV epidemic and adding to a decadeslong roster of failed attempts. Known as Mosaico, the trial was the product of a public-private partnership including the U.S. government and the pharmaceutical giant Janssen. It was run out of eight nations in Europe and the Americas, including the U.S., starting in 2019. Researchers enrolled nearly 3,900 men who have sex with men and transgender people, all deemed at substantial risk of HIV. The  leaders of the study   decided to discontinue  the mammoth research effort after an independent data and safety monitoring board reviewed the trial’s findings and saw no evidence the vaccine lowered participants’ rate of HIV acquisition. “It’s obviously disappointing,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, who as the long-time head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) was an...

California public defender died in 'brutal crime' during Mexico anniversary trip

  The family of a California public defender who died while celebrating his wedding anniversary in Mexico believes he was the victim of a "brutal crime," their lawyer said Tuesday. Elliot Blair, 33, died Saturday outside his hotel room at Las Rocas Resort and Spa in Rosarito Beach, roughly 32 miles south of San Diego, the lawyer, David Scarsone, said in a statement. The incident occurred in an open-air walkway on the resort's third floor, he said. Blair's family has not heard about his death directly from local authorities; instead, they learned about what happened from a "liaison" to the local coroner's office, the lawyer's statement said. The liaison, who is not identified in the statement, told the family that Blair died of severe head trauma and that his case had been forwarded to prosecutors for a possible homicide investigation, the statement said. Neither Rosarito Beach Mayor Hilda Araceli Brown Figueredo nor Las Rocas Resort responded to requ...

Medical insurance: What is cumulative bonus and how does it work?

  If you bought a   medical insurance policy , and want your sum insured to increase year after year, you can look for an insurance policy that offers cumulative bonus embedded in it. It is, however, important to note that cumulative bonus is different from  no-claims bonus feature that is usually offered to the insured person when s/he does not make any claims during the policy year.  So, let us first understand what exactly is this. What is cumulative bonus? The cumulative bonus refers to a monetary benefit which is added to the insured sum at the start of each policy year. Since the bonus is cumulative — it increases for each year regardless of the fact the claim is made or not. This cumulative bonus is available for individual as well as family floater policies. Generally, insurers offer an increase of 5 to 50 percent of the original sum assured for each year. The insurance policy may specify a maximum threshold on the cumulative bonus amount. Let us un...

Can alcoholics buy health and life insurance? Here's how

  Benefits of health and life insurance Smoking and drinking are lifestyle habits that can cause severe impacts in the long term. Let’s discuss the benefits of health and life insurance for policyholders involved in these lifestyle habits. Life insurance An avid drinker or smoker certainly knows about the repercussions of her habits. By paying some extra premium, a policyholder with lifestyle habits is securing the future of their loved ones. Life insurance provides a policyholder with financial security and protection and a guaranteed death benefit. Health Insurance Health insurance lets policyholders receive the best medical care without burning a hole in their pocket. Health insurance plans can take care of any unexpected medical emergencies or critical illnesses. Thus, policyholders with lifestyle habits like smoking and drinking alcohol have mental peace in case they face any kind of health issues in future. How can they avail health and life insurance? Yes, an avid drinker or...

Five thumb rules to select the right health insurance policy

  The healthcare industry has witnessed a rapid rise in demand across the country, especially since the Covid outbreak. New and complicated ailments, lifestyle diseases and better health awareness are some of the reasons for medical inflation. Going by our lifestyle patterns, there’s no way these figures are coming down in the near future. So, how do we protect ourselves and our savings? Having a good healthcare plan in place can save you from going bankrupt. It will also help you access the best facilities. When it comes to choosing the right health insurance plan, confusion and questions are normal. There are so many healthcare providers to choose from. To add fuel to the chaos, each provider has a plethora of products (same game, different name). This is why it is impossible to cherry-pick the most appropriate health plan for yourself or your family. In case you’re stuck with the same delirium, here are five thumb rules you can follow to make an informed decision. When...