TribLive stories, Page 2272
New Kensington-Arnold teachers show up en masse to remind board a contract isn’t done
With at least 70 teachers watching Thursday, the New Kensington-Arnold School Board approved a 2019-20 preliminary budget with the same teachers’ payroll number as this school year. Whether that number increases when the final budget is approved in June remains to be seen as negotiations between the district and the...
Official: Asylum seekers to wait in Mexico starting Friday
SAN DIEGO — The Trump administration on Friday will start forcing some asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while their cases wind through U.S. courts, an official said, launching what could become one of the more significant changes to the immigration system in years. The changes will be introduced at...
Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet rips Ted Cruz’s ‘crocodile tears’ over shutdown
WASHINGTON — Signs of strain from the 34-day partial government shutdown are emerging on the Senate floor. Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado tore into Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas on Thursday after Cruz backed a GOP bill to pay Coast Guard members but not reopen the government. The...
Florida Secretary of State Michael Artel steps down after blackface photos surface
FORT LAUDERDALE — Florida Secretary of State Michael Ertel resigned Thursday when photos emerged of him wearing blackface as a Hurricane “Katrina victim” at a Halloween party in 2005. The stunning development ended the former Seminole County election supervisor’s 16-day stint as Florida’s top elections officer. The Tallahassee Democrat obtained...
Stop whining, the Rams and Patriots earned their way to Super Bowl LIII
The level of our NFL discourse has deteriorated to such mind-numbing depths that three days after an historic Championship Weekend, all anyone wants to talk about are the referees, overtime rules, competition committee meetings and some hurt feelings. Well, I’ve had about enough. Message for everyone: Stop whining. And maybe...
Pro Bowl becomes family affair for Pouncey twins
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Mike and Maurkice Pouncey were among the first players off the AFC Pro Bowl practice field Thursday. They were trying to hustle to the locker room to shower, change and get on the road. They had people waiting. More than 50 of them, actually. “This...
Laurels & lances: Art and history and crimes and punishment
Laurel: To “Hamilton” for prioritizing education. The hottest ticket in town is a free ticket for 2,700 Pennsylvania students who scored a shot at seeing the Tony Award-winning megahit at the Benedum Center on Friday as part of the Hamilton Education Project. It brings kids from low-income districts to the...
Northern Regional Police warn about increase in car break-ins
The Northern Regional Police Department is warning residents to be vigilant about locking their car doors after a recent rash of thefts from vehicles in Pine, Richland and Marshall townships. Capt. John Sicilia said they’ve had 13 reported incidents of items stolen from unlocked vehicles in the Treesdale and Alderwood...
Weezer covers ‘No Scrubs,’ ‘Take on Me,’ ‘Billie Jean’ in surprise new album
If you’ve ever wondered what Weezer would sound like covering R&B girl group TLC and ’80s synthpop band A-ha, you’re in luck. The rock band belts out everything from “No Scrubs” to “Take on Me” on their surprise new album of covers, “Weezer (The Teal Album),” which dropped early Thursday...
Flaky deep-dish pizza worth the time it takes to make at home
If you’re from the Northeast, or if you haven’t been to Chicago, you may dismiss deep-dish pizza out of regional pride. That would be a mistake. Real Chicago-style pizza is certainly thick, but its texture and flavor are something special: Instead of being bread-like, the crust offers the contrast of...
Review: Steamy ‘Serenity’ is so bad it almost parodies itselfVideo
Let it be stipulated that the movie “Serenity” is about a battered woman (Anne Hathaway) who is trying to persuade her ex-husband (Matthew McConaughey) to murder her current one (Jason Clarke). And let it also be stipulated that the movie “Serenity” is absolutely not about that. At first glance, the...
Review: ‘The Kid Who Would Be King’ sends a message of hopeVideo
Do the Middle Ages hold the key to saving the world? “The Kid Who Would Be King” suggests so. This contemporary, Arthurian-themed adventure encourages kids of today to look to the legends of the past — and to the lessons of medieval chivalry — in their search for a peaceful...
Post Malone teams with Red Hot Chili Peppers for Grammy telecast
The rapper Post Malone will perform onstage with the Red Hot Chili Peppers during the 2019 Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy announced Thursday. The tag-team effort is the latest news on the ceremony, which will be broadcast Feb. 10 on CBS. The singer and songwriter Alicia Keys will host the...
Letter to the editor: Quit politicizing wall
I find it disturbing that the crisis of the wall (barrier?) has been politicized to this point. What I would like to see is Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and the rest of those who say there is no crisis bused to the border, where they can actually see what’s...
Letter to the editor: Romney has no courage
Oren Spiegler’s letter ”Romney’s courage” (Jan. 8, TribLIVE) praising Mitt Romney for standing up to President Trump demands a strong rebuttal. Spiegler states that Romney supports many of Trump’s policies, then lauds him for denouncing Trump for his personal and destructive behavior that is supposedly dividing America. Trump has been...
Letter to the editor: What if it were your kids?
I 100 percent agree with letter-writer Amy Kriss (“Catholic Church is not above the law,” Jan. 2, TribLIVE). I would like to ask the Rev. John Sweeney’s attorney, face to face, if Sweeney did this to his children, what would his response be? If he did this to my kids,...
Carnegie woman celebrates 93rd birthday
Lena Enrietti of Carnegie will celebrate her 93rd birthday with family Feb. 2. Lena is the wife of the late Ernest Enrietti, former owner of Enrietti News in Carnegie. She has two daughters, Jean (Michael) Martin and Diane (Marc) Pakler. Lena also has five grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. Lena is...
Gentle cooking is the key to ultra-tender white bean soup
The people of Tuscany are known as mangiafagioli, or “bean eaters,” a nod to the prominent role beans play in their cuisine. Cannellini (white kidney) beans are the region’s most famous legume, and Tuscan cooks go to extremes to ensure these beans are cooked perfectly, from simmering them in rainwater...
Rams’ Super Bowl-bound bandwagon growingVideo
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams’ bandwagon might be gaining momentum headed toward Super Bowl LIII. With the Rams’ 26-23 win over the Saints on Sunday, the folks are hopping on for the franchise’s fourth trip to the Super Bowl and first since 2002 and more important, its first...
Broncos RB Lindsay enjoying spoils of I-told-you-so season
Denver Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay is enjoying the spoils of his phenomenal rookie season even though the cast on his right wrist will keep him out of the Pro Bowl this weekend. Lindsay is serving as a social media correspondent for the NFL at the league’s annual all-star game...
Trump is trapped and tanking in polls
Even this White House, infamous for self-delusion, must realize it’s in deep trouble. Two more polls released Wednesday show the depth of President Trump’s problem. The Morning Consult-Politico poll finds that “57 percent of registered voters disapprove of Trump’s job performance — more than any other survey in Trump’s two...
Under fire, House Democrat Sheila Jackson Lee to step down from leadership roles
WASHINGTON — A senior Democratic congresswoman is stepping down as chair of a House subcommittee and the nonprofit arm of the Congressional Black Caucus amid claims that she fired an aide who planned to sue the nonprofit after she reported a sexual assault, lawmakers said Wednesday. The move, by Rep....
Fifty years after last Grand Slam, Laver says it’ll happen again
MELBOURNE, Australia — Fifty years after Rod Laver won the last true Grand Slam in men’s tennis, he is fairly confident the feat will be replicated one day, unlikely as it may seem. “It’s got to happen again,” the Australian left-hander said Wednesday at the Australian Open. While Steffi Graf...
Jessica Poole: Patients need to ask questions
America’s health care delivery system is undergoing a dramatic shift. More and more patients are choosing office settings and ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) over hospital-based outpatient units for same-day surgical procedures for everything from total joint replacements to cataract surgery. This shift is attributed to advancements in surgical techniques, pain...
California city approves 25-cent fee on disposable cups
SAN FRANCISCO — Patrons of restaurants and coffee shops in Berkeley, Calif., who don’t bring a reusable cup for their beverage will have to pay a 25-cent fee for a disposable cup as part of an ordinance approved by city officials to reduce restaurant waste. Berkeley’s City Council voted unanimously...
