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Franklin, Weinstein: If a lab leak led to COVID-19, there are truths we must not ignore

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

Since 2019 when COVID-19 emerged in China, scientists worldwide have been trying to ascertain the origin of the virus.The two major theories are a natural spillover from bats to an animal source and then to humans or a laboratory accident. A related question is whether the virus emerged from nature or was the result of human-made genetic manipulation.Until recently, although no animal intermediary between virus-carrying bats and humans has been identified, Chinese scientists and many of their Western counterparts, including prominent American researchers, argued that animals transmitted the virus to humans. They downplayed the lab leak theory and essentially dismissed the possibility that the virus was engineered rather than a creation of nature.Particularly notable was a report on the pandemic’s origin released in March 2021 by the World Health Organization, which failed to identify the source of the virus but claimed an animal source was “likely to very likely.” ...

Herbst Eatery & Farm Stand lives up to high expectations

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

Lots of restaurants have opened in St. Paul in the past few years, but very, very few have fallen into the “it” category.The entryway at at Herbst Eatery & Farm Stand in St. Paul’s St. Anthony neighborhood. (Jess Fleming / Pioneer Press)Enter Herbst Eatery & Farm Stand, the new restaurant on Raymond Avenue in the St. Anthony Park neighborhood, which is popular not only with neighbors, but also the crowd that shows up to all the hot new spots in the Twin Cities.Owned by husband-and-wife team Angie and Jörg Pierach, the latter of whom is a founding partner in Minneapolis’ Tilia, the restaurant is a fulfillment of a dream for the couple, who are residents of the neighborhood, but also own a hobby farm in the Driftless area of Western Wisconsin. They helped form a co-op of young Driftless-area farmers, which exclusively provides products for the restaurant and adjoining market (still in its infancy and pretty sparse when we visited).Chef Eric Simpson is a relative newcomer...

Letters: Rename Ford Parkway in St. Paul

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

‘George Latimer Parkway’With the Ford plant long gone — and with Henry Ford’s reputation of being a major anti-Semite — I have been thinking about renaming Ford Parkway.The replacement name I would like to recommend is “George Latimer Parkway.”According to one current city councilor, “Latimer was hands down the best mayor we ever had.” So who could be more deserving of having a major St. Paul street named after him? What an honor!Yes, I know, it’s a huge deal, renaming a street. All of the stores and all of the residents who live on Ford Parkway would be inconvenienced. But, if it’s ever going to happen, there’s no time like the present. Right?John Fineberg, St. Paul An ugly, false ideaI take great offense at Rob Hubbard’s  maliciously false comment in last week’s review of “Tootsie.” He says, “The protagonist’s self discovery might seem pretty inconsequential in an America roiled by vitriolic hatred toward transgender people.”America does not hate...

98.3 TRY Social Dilemma: Would You Let Your Kids Drink Water From the Garden Hose?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Today's 98.3 TRY Social Dilemma came from Maria. She was at a friend's house over the weekend and a situation popped up.Hi Jaime. Here's a dilemma that came up over the weekend. I went over to my friend Carol's house to visit and sit outside on Sunday. It was a beautiful day! My friend Carol's daughter was there along with the grandkids and everyone was playing in the backyard while Carol and I chatted. The kids were running all around, and they had one of those little kiddy pools set up so the little ones were splashing in that and having a great time. At one point, one of the kids said she was thirsty and wanted some water. And I yelled over, just grab the hose and give her a sip of water! Well, you would have thought I told her to put poison in her kids mouth. Carol's daughter said there was no way she would EVER let her kids drink from the hose. She went on and on about unsanitary it was. I said I got most of my water from the ho...

Albany man sentenced over five years for drug distribution

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- An Albany man was sentenced to over five years in prison (64 months) for distributing heroin and fentanyl on at least five occasions in 2021. Carlos Hernandez, 54, pleaded guilty to charges in February. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! In pleading guilty, Hernandez admitted that between April and May 2021, he sold 68 grams of fentanyl and 71 grams of heroin on at least five occasions in Albany while serving parole from state prison. He is also set to serve a four-year term of supervised release after he is released.

Ask Amy: Bride wants a withdrawal from the Bank of Uncle Dave

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

Dear Amy: Four months before my daughter’s wedding, she told me that her uncle (my brother, “Dave”) would make her feel unsafe if he was a guest. She asked me not to invite him.My daughter is very politically progressive, as are many of her friends, and although she and Dave have always had a good relationship (I thought), he is a conservative voter and has supported candidates we all abhor.Dave has always been very nice, so my daughter’s request surprised me.I wrote Dave a very nice note, telling him that we would not be comfortable with him at the wedding and that he would not be invited.Dave did not respond and did not attend.Afterward, I sent him a card and pictures from the wedding, all in an effort to make him feel like he was not being totally left out.I have not heard from Dave since then. When my siblings found out what I had done they were angry with me.That is just one problem.Another problem is that Dave has not sent my daughter and son-in-law a wedding gift.In the past,...

Russian missile hits restaurant in Ukraine's Kramatorsk killing at least eight

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

A Russian missile struck a restaurant in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk on Tuesday (27 June), killing at least eight people and wounding 56, emergency services said, as rescue crews combed the rubble in search of casualties.A second missile hit a village on the fringes of Kramatorsk, injuring five, but the main casualties were at the restaurant, where at least three children were among the dead."Rescuers are working through the rubble of the destroyed building and searching for people who are probably still under it," emergency service officials said on the Telegram messaging app.A Russian missile also hit a cluster of buildings in Kremenchuk, about 375 km (230 miles) west in central Ukraine, exactly a year after an attack on a shopping mall there that killed at least 20. No casualties were reported in the latest attack.In Kramatorsk, a city frequently targeted by Russian attacks, emergency workers scurried in and out of the shattered restaurant as residents stood outside ...

How organized crime is profiting from flaws in anti-smoking policies

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

The trade in counterfeit and contraband cigarettes is booming in Europe. Criminal gangs are costing governments billions of euro in lost revenue and frustrating efforts to get smokers to switch to much safer smoke-free products. A new survey shows that the problem is worst in France, where an estimated 16.9 billion illicit cigarettes were sold last year, nearly half the EU total, writes Political Editor Nick Powell.After centuries of controlling tobacco, the mighty French state is letting go of the market, forfeiting €7.2 billion in tax revenues lost in a single year. Half of the illicit trade is highly visible, with the gangsters’ wares sold outside nearly every metro station in Paris, the other half is distributed using social networks online, including to children and young people who start smoking as a result.Once consumers are lost to the black market, it is hard to get them back. Switching to safer smoke-free products is less likely if instead of being an alternative to taxed ...

On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the EU ‘cannot just stick to slogans’

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

Ehud Yaari speaks during a briefing organized in Brussels by Europe Israel Press Association."What should be done is to save the Palestinian Authority from collapsing,” Israel’s leading Mideast affairs expert Ehud Yaari told European Jewish Press. "Josep Borrell has made in the past several statements that make the Israeli government understands that there is no great use in discussing with him. You have better addresses in Brussels and in the EU to discuss what can really be done," writes Yossi Lempkowicz."I wish Europe should understand that the main Iranian effort is to obtain hegemony all over the Levant. And then they will deal with the Gulf… The European Union cannot just stick to slogans and sometimes slander and seek a quick solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict  that is not available unfortunately," believes Ehud Yaari, Israeli leading expert on Middle East affairs."Because the Palestinians are not ready. This is the root of the problem. They are not ready for a deal...

Single-family house sells for $2.1 million in San Jose

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:03:27 GMT

5837 Porto Alegre Drive – Google Street ViewA house located in the 5800 block of Porto Alegre Drive in San Jose has new owners. The 1,870-square-foot property, built in 1971, was sold on June 7, 2023. The $2,100,000 purchase price works out to $1,123 per square foot. The property features four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garage, and two parking spaces. It sits on an 8,712-square-foot lot.These nearby houses have also recently changed hands:On Antigua Drive, San Jose, in July 2022, a 1,870-square-foot home was sold for $2,100,000, a price per square foot of $1,123. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.A 2,029-square-foot home on the 5800 block of Antigua Drive in San Jose sold in December 2022, for $1,830,000, a price per square foot of $902. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.In April 2023, a 3,697-square-foot home on Ardsley Court in San Jose sold for $2,710,000, a price per square foot of $733. The home has 5 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.