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Metro Transit targets fare evasion with non-criminal fines on light rail trains

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

With a citation book in hand, Metro Transit Community Service Officers Vy Vang and Chi Vang boarded a westbound light rail train at the downtown Union Depot station on a mission to discourage — but not detain — fare evaders. Mostly, they wanted to be seen and heard.“Metro Transit Police,” announced Chi Vang, in a commanding voice, as at least two passengers on Tuesday morning hot-footed themselves off the Green Line train car. “Please have your fare out. We’ll be checking tickets.”What followed was part enforcement action, part delicate dance, with compliant passengers offered a chance to dismount at the next transit station rather than take home a $35 non-criminal citation. Sleeping passengers were roused, in part for their own safety to ensure they hadn’t overdosed, explained the two student officers, who are not related.Those cited were informed of ways they could get the tickets waived or reduced, such as by adding cash to a fare c...

Movie review: ‘Boy and the Heron’ is another masterpiece from legendary Japanese animator

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

Katie Walsh | Tribune News ServiceIn 2013, legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki claimed he was retiring after the release of his film “The Wind Rises,” which was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated feature. It’s a common refrain for Miyazaki, who said he was retiring after “Princess Mononoke” and the Oscar-winning “Spirited Away.” But he has yet to stick with retirement, as evidenced by the release of his first film in a decade, the enchanting “The Boy and the Heron.”Based on the 1937 book “How Do You Live?” by Genzaburo Yoshino, which was given to Miyazaki in his youth by his mother, “The Boy and the Heron” is a deeply personal project from the animation auteur. Like his other work, it is a fantastical and wildly imaginative film that straddles the spirit and human worlds, with a story rooted in deeply relatable emotion, threaded with an enduring sense of hope for the future despite the harshness of everyday reality.Set in the waning days of World War II in a rur...

With less to do, and stress over, Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson is back on track

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

There’s no secret to John Hynes’ coaching goals. He tells you, straight up, every time he’s asked.He in fact summed it up nicely just two days after becoming the Wild’s seventh head coach on Nov. 28. Things tend to go well, He said, “if you can defend 200 feet from your net.”That, of course, isn’t an uncommon goal, but the Wild have taken to a series of changes in how the team plays that Hynes is still tweaking seven games into his residency., and the coach spent a lot of time Wednesday reinforcing — on the ice and in the video room — what has helped Minnesota recover from a stretch in which they lost 11 of 13 games.Changes are coming “little pieces” Hynes said after a 40-minute practice at TRIA Rink on Wednesday. But they’re adding up to an effective whole.Minnesota heads into Thursday night’s 7 p.m. start against the Calgary Flames at Xcel Energy Center with a 5-2-0 record under Hynes after completing a 2-2 road trip through four Pacific Division cities.It started with a 5-2 victo...

RPI imagining the future of tech with AI Alliance

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- RPI is taking a first-hand approach with the future of artificial intelligence -- joining Meta, IBM and others to form an alliance focused on developing tools, reducing risk and creating a secure future for tech. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! “The alliance is really trying in a sense, to do that on a much larger set of things," Dr. Jim Hendler, Director of the Future of Computing Institute at RPI, said. "It includes education, includes tools, it includes policy. It's really very much in a formative stage.”Hendler said AI has always been present in our tech, from the first GPS to Siri, but as it grows exponentially, it's important to help people understand what AI is and how it works. “One of the things we're trying very hard to work in the education space is to get people to understand the technology," Hendler said. "When should you trust it? When can't you trust it, what you can trust, and how do you use it pr...

Dreaming of a White Christmas? Might not happen in St. Louis this year

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Christmas Day is less than two weeks away. A "White Christmas" gives people the opportunity to ring in the holiday with snow. It marks the ultimate holiday spectacle for some, but it's not always guaranteed. To truly experience a White Christmas, there needs to be at least one inch of measurable snow on the ground by 6 a.m. on Christmas Day, according to the National Weather Service. St. Louis delivered with a White Christmas charm last year, but the odds of a repeat aren't looking so strong. The FOX 2 weather team's latest long-range outlook projects above-average temperatures for much of the United States over the next 8 to 14 days. The normal average high for mid-December in St. Louis is around 43 degrees. A potentially prolonged situation with above-freezing temperatures, paired with minimal chances of precipitation in the near future, make it seemingly unlikely for measurable snow by Christmas morning. Right now, the FOX 2 weather models project around a 13% chance ...

'Country Roads' led Ruby Leigh into the top five on 'The Voice'

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

ST. LOUIS – A Lincoln County teenager has advanced to the top five, securing a spot among the best contestants in 'The Voice' competition. Ruby Leigh achieved this milestone on 'The Voice' when she sang 'Take Me Home, Country Roads,' a song by John Denver.Leigh said the reason she chose the song is that she's missing home, even though she's having fun out in Hollywood."The song just felt right because we are so far away from home, here in Hollywood, and we don't see any trees, birds, deer or any of the things we love back home, especially the country roads. At home, we like to just ride around to watch deer and turkeys and just enjoy nature's beauty," she said. "Because in Hollywood, you see a palm tree every now and then and hardly ever see a bird, let alone anything else. I guess you can take the girl out of the country, but you sure can't take the country out of the girl."THE VOICE -- " Live Semi-Final Results" Episode 2421B -- Pictured: (l-r) Jacquie Roar, Lila Forde, Ruby Leigh...

Missouri influencer helps clear holiday wish lists for foster kids

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Kansas City-area influencer and content creator is using her platform to help kids that sometimes get forgotten around the holidays.Emily Fauver has more than a million followers on Instagram and more than four million on TikTok, but it's what she experienced before she launched those pages that makes her efforts around the holidays so personal.St. Louis area wish lists:Ranken JordanChildren's Hospital"I grew up in foster care," Fauver said. "I was adopted when I was eight, and my sister was in the system until she was 18. So she was in a group home and actually aged out."That gave Fauver a lot of opportunities to see how tough that life can be."We would go visit her and, I'm telling you, there was nothing in her room except the sheets on her bed," Fauver said. "A lot of these homes didn't even have a Christmas tree."Melissa Carter says the roughly 40 kids in her car through Home Court Advantage Inc.'s group homes face similar challenges."Some wont have anyone ...

Judge sets aside NCAA transfer rule in wake of lawsuit brought by Colorado AG Phil Weiser, six other states

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — College athletes who were denied the chance to play immediately after transferring a second time can return to competition — for now — after a federal judge issued a 14-day restraining order Wednesday against the NCAA.U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey in northern West Virginia issued the order against the NCAA from enforcing the transfer rule. A lawsuit filed by Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser and six other states alleged the rule’s waiver process violated federal antitrust law. The order clears the way for athletes to play during the two-week period and also ensures that schools won’t be punished for allowing it.The NCAA said in a statement it would comply with the order and notify schools.A hearing on the restraining order is scheduled for Dec. 27.“Colorado believes that student athletes should be able to move freely and transfer to universities where they can best pursue opportunities to thrive,” Weiser said in a statement released Wedn...

Woman charged by Boulder DA in death of cyclist Magnus White

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

A Boulder woman has been charged in the death of 17-year-old Magnus White, who died when he was struck by a car in July while riding his bike on Colo. 119.Yeva Smilianska, 23, has been charged with vehicular homicide – reckless, a Class 4 felony, the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday. According to a release, Smilianska was arrested and booked into the Boulder County Jail on Tuesday and will appear in front of a judge Wednesday for her hearing on advisement.Yeva Smilianska (Courtesy of Boulder County Sheriff’s Office)A judge signed off on an arrest warrant Tuesday afternoon charging Smilianska, according to a news release.In a statement, Magnus’s family said they accepted the criminal charge filed against Smilianska.“Smilianska willfully and consciously chose to get behind the wheel of her car, engaging in reckless driving behavior that resulted in the fatal collision into our son Magnus who was struck from behind and ejected from h...

Doritos rolls out nacho cheese-flavored liquor

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 16:56:00 GMT

Doritos is betting that its new nacho-cheese flavored liquor is all that and a bag of chips.The PepsiCo-owned brand has released a new spirit based on its nacho cheese flavored chips “that smells and tastes just like the real thing,” a news release said.The company partnered with Empirical, a business known for making spirits with creative flavors, to release the Empirical x Doritos Nacho Cheese Spirit. The product will be available for a limited time. DoorDash reveals top-ordered food for 2023 The drink’s flavor contains notes of “Nacho Cheese, corn tostada, umami and a hint of acidity.” The real nacho cheese flavor is retained “through vacuum distillation,” according to the news release.The new drink will be available online and at select markets in California and New York for a suggested retail price of $65.Customers who purchase the spirit can also make three cocktails, “Mary Mary,” “Doritos Bangarang” and “Double Triangle Margarita,” all of which are subtle nods to the Dorito...