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Douthat: Why we should fear China more than Middle Eastern war

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

On Thursday, President Joe Biden gave a speech linking the Israel-Hamas conflict and the Russian invasion of Ukraine and framing U.S. involvement as part of a grand strategy to contain our enemies and rivals. “When terrorists don’t pay a price for their terror, when dictators don’t pay a price for their aggression,” he declared, “they keep going. And the cost and the threats to America and the world keep rising.”Broadly speaking, Biden is correct; the United States has a strong interest in preventing rival powers from redrawing maps or undermining America’s democratic allies. But the difference between the president’s strategic analysis and the kind I’ve tried to offer recently is twofold: the general absence, in Biden’s words, of any acknowledgment of difficult trade-offs and the specific absence of any reference to China as a potentially more significant threat than Russia or Iran.These absences are not particularly surprising. It’s normal for American presidents to say chest-poun...

Detached house in Oakland sells for $2.2 million

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

6361 Ascot Drive – Google Street ViewThe spacious property located in the 6300 block of Ascot Drive in Oakland was sold on Sept. 15, 2023. The $2,208,000 purchase price works out to $737 per square foot. The house, built in 1954, has an interior space of 2,994 square feet. This single-story house provides a generous living space with its four bedrooms and three baths. Additionally, the home includes a two-car garage.These nearby houses have also recently changed hands:A 1,053-square-foot home on the first block of Camelford Place in Oakland sold in December 2022, for $885,000, a price per square foot of $840. The home has 2 bedrooms 1 bathroom.In June 2023, a 2,496-square-foot home on Longcroft Drive in Oakland sold for $1,600,000, a price per square foot of $641. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Ascot Drive, Oakland, in May 2023, a 2,165-square-foot home was sold for $1,700,000, a price per square foot of $785. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

How to talk to kids about conflicts like the Israel-Hamas war

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

By Daniel Otis | CTVNews.caToronto, Ontario (CTV Network) — With the Israel-Hamas war dominating headlines, conversations and social media feeds, many children will inevitably have questions about the deadly conflict unfolding in the Middle East. Experts say it’s important to be honest, optimistic and let children lead the conversation.“I would start with saying invite your child to share what they’ve heard, and what they know already, what they’re wondering about, rather than launching into answers and explanations that they might not be looking for,” Toronto-based child psychologist Dr. Dina Lafoyiannis told CTVNews.ca. “Because you might go into the topic and a direction that they don’t actually need, like they might be concerned about their own safety… rather than years of politics that they might not understand.”Lafoyiannis says the next step should be asking if they have questions and answering in a developmentally ap...

Four-bedroom home sells for $2.4 million in Fremont

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

223 Rosado Road – Google Street ViewThe property located in the 200 block of Rosado Road in Fremont was sold on Sept. 20, 2023. The $2,380,000 purchase price works out to $1,353 per square foot. The house, built in 1976, has an interior space of 1,759 square feet. This house offers a spacious layout with four bedrooms and two baths. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. Additionally, the home is equipped with a garage.Additional houses that have recently been purchased close by include:On Las Palmas Avenue, Fremont, in October 2022, a 2,095-square-foot home was sold for $2,225,000, a price per square foot of $1,062. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In November 2022, a 2,379-square-foot home on Tirso Street in Fremont sold for $2,490,000, a price per square foot of $1,047. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 2,552-square-foot home on the 100 block of Recino Street in Fremont sold in May 2023, for $2,705,000, a price per square foot of $1,060. The home has 4 bed...

Kristof: We must not kill Palestinian children to try to protect Israel’s

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel — The crisis in the Middle East is a knotty test of our humanity, asking how to respond to a grotesque provocation for which there is no good remedy. And in this test, we in the West are not doing well.The acceptance of large-scale bombing of the Gaza Strip and of a ground invasion likely to begin soon suggests that Palestinian children are lesser victims, devalued by their association with Hamas and its history of terrorism. Consider that more than 1,500 children in Gaza have been killed, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, and around one-third of Gaza’s homes have been destroyed or damaged in just two weeks — and this is merely the softening-up before what is expected to be a much bloodier ground invasion.I’ve flown into beautiful, sun-washed Tel Aviv, Israel, where the graffiti reads “Destroy Hamas.” Israelis have been shattered by the Hamas terrorism and kidnappings, an attack that felt existential and explains the determination to dismantle Hamas, w...

California man gets year in prison for sending vile messages to father of school massacre victim

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

By TERRY SPENCER | Associated PressFORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.— A California property manager was sentenced to a year in federal prison for sending more than 200 vile online messages to a father of a teenage girl who died in the 2018 massacre at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.James Catalano, 62 of Fresno, was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Robert Scola in Miami after pleading guilty in March to cyberstalking. Prosecutors called the messages he sent Fred Guttenberg “callous and cruel.”Guttenberg’s 14-year-old daughter Jaime Guttenberg was murdered in the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting in Parkland that left 14 students and three staff members dead. Catalano also received three years probation and must undergo mental health treatment.Catalano sent Guttenberg messages for eight months starting in December 2021 that celebrated Jaime Guttenberg’s death and reveled in the wounds she suffered. He also mocked the sadness and loss Guttenberg feels and directed obscenities, slurs a...

Shooting in Montgomery County leaves 1 dead, 2 injured

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

One person is dead and another person is in police custody, following a triple shooting late Monday night near an elementary school in Fairland, Maryland.Montgomery County police said officers, along with Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service personnel, responded just before 11 p.m. to the 14300 block of Fairdale Road near Fairland Elementary School for the report of a shooting.A male victim, whose age is unknown, suffering from “an apparent gunshot wound,” was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.A second male victim, age unknown, was transported to a hospital with “apparent gunshot wounds,” after being located outside. Police said his injuries were “non-life threatening”.A third make victim, age unknown, was found a short time later suffering from “an apparent gunshot wound” and was transported to a hospital. The extent of his injuries are not known.Police said one person is in custody. It is not clear if that person...

TransUnion: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — CHICAGO (AP) — TransUnion (TRU) on Tuesday reported a loss of $399.8 million in its third quarter.On a per-share basis, the Chicago-based company said it had a loss of $2.07. Earnings, adjusted for asset impairment costs and non-recurring costs, came to 91 cents per share.The results did not meet Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 14 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 95 cents per share.The credit reporting company posted revenue of $968.7 million in the period, which also fell short of Street forecasts. Thirteen analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $982 million.For the current quarter ending in December, TransUnion expects its per-share earnings to range from 67 cents to 72 cents.The company said it expects revenue in the range of $917 million to $932 million for the fiscal fourth quarter.TransUnion expects full-year earnings in the range of $3.24 to $3.28 per share, with revenue ranging from $3.79 billion to $3.81 billio...

Halliburton: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — HOUSTON (AP) — Halliburton Co. (HAL) on Tuesday reported third-quarter profit of $716 million.The Houston-based company said it had profit of 79 cents per share.The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 77 cents per share.The provider of drilling services to oil and gas operators posted revenue of $5.8 billion in the period, which missed Street forecasts. Nine analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $5.84 billion._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on HAL at https://www.zacks.com/ap/HALSource

3M: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:08 GMT

ST PAUL, Minn. (AP) — ST PAUL, Minn. (AP) — 3M Co. (MMM) on Tuesday reported a loss of $2.08 billion in its third quarter.On a per-share basis, the St Paul, Minnesota-based company said it had a loss of $3.74. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, were $2.68 per share.The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of four analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.34 per share.The maker of Post-it notes, industrial coatings and ceramics posted revenue of $8.31 billion in the period.3M expects full-year earnings in the range of $8.95 to $9.15 per share._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on MMM at https://www.zacks.com/ap/MMMSource