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BOSTON -- Drivers for Uber and Lyft will earn a minimum pay standard of $32.50 per hour under a settlement announced Thursday by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, in a deal that also includes a suite of benefits and protections. The two companies will also be required to pay a combined $175 million to the state to resolve allegations that the companies violated Massachusetts wage and hour laws, a substantial majority of which will be distributed to current and former drivers. ... The companies were pushing a ballot question that would classify drivers as independent contractors eligible for some benefits,...

[Catholic Caucus] Priest: Pope Francis causing ‘many schisms’ and ‘deeper wounds’ in the Church than any other PopeIn the past, the Popes stood for purity of Church doctrine, while the schismatics rejected this doctrine. Today, however, Pope Francis rejects traditional Catholic teachings and seems to condone schisms or even provoke them.Anyone who has been following Church news recently will increasingly come across the term “schism,” which is causing an unusually strong stir.In Spain, a convent of Poor Clares has broken away from the Church and considers all Popes after Pius XII (1939-1958) to be illegitimate. In their view, the Apostolic...

Barack Obama and Bill Clinton have posted that Biden should stay in the race. I agree with them. Joe, stay in the race!

"If, for whatever reason, there’s a change at the top of the ticket, you guys are in trouble with Donald Trump. Because the guy who was up there tonight is not a guy who’s going to inspire people,” Axelrod said on CNN following Thursday’s debate, in a clip highlighted by Mediaite.

Back on the campaign rally trail, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump issued a warning for world rivals seeking to take advantage of the final months of President Biden's "incompetent" administration: Do not dare. "The whole world should know that while Biden is the worst president in the history of America, our country is going to be strong again, and it's going to be very soon," Trump told a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia, in a speech that aired live and in its entirety on Newsmax and the free Newsmax2 streaming platform. "I want the enemies to know that because we...

Tractor Supply, a retail chain that sells home improvement equipment, livestock and agricultural supplies for farmers and pet owners, is eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion roles; withdrawing carbon emission goals; and walking back support for the LGBTQ community as part of sweeping changes to environmental, social and governance initiatives, the company announced this week.The retailer said in a Thursday release that it will no longer submit data to the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy group. The company will also stop sponsoring Pride festivals and voting campaigns, the release said. The company previously earned a perfect score on the Human...

New York Times editorial board calls on Joe Biden to drop out of the race

“And I would say that really, it’s the Houthis that have failed to deter the United States and the international community from continuing to operate in the Red Sea. You know, they’ve conducted over 190 attacks, the vast majority of which have been knocked down, thanks to U. S. and international efforts to help safeguard shipping and the lives of mariners through operations like Operation Prosperity Guardian,” Ryder said.“The United States has continued to destroy Houthi offensive capabilities in Yemen, but the terror group continues to have sufficient means to threaten shipping. This offers insights regarding the size of the...

U.S. — Kristi Noem's penchant for putting down untrainable animals made her popular with Democrats following last night's Presidential Debate, with her phone reportedly ringing off the hook ever since. Democrats from all over the country were calling to implore the South Dakota Governor to "please please" take Biden out behind the White House shed and put him out of his misery. "I just can't imagine how hard it must be for the poor guy," said one caller, later identified as California Governor Gavin Newsom. "The president can barely move. That's not a life worth living. He deserves the dignity...

Since November 2023, the Houthis have conducted dozens of attacks on commercial ships transiting the Red Sea, endangering civilian crews and threatening freedom of navigation through a critical global transportation route. The Houthis are non-state actors in Yemen who have used Iran’s support to gradually expand their military capabilities since at least 2015.In early December 2023, the Houthis threatened to attack any ships that they believed were heading to Israeli ports, though many of their attacks both before and since have been against civilian ships with either tenuous or no known Israeli affiliations or port calls. Since mid-December 2023, the...

Cancer survivors who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or anything other than straight and cisgender (LGBTQ+) experience more chronic health conditions, disabilities, and other physical and cognitive limitations than non-LGBTQ+ cancer survivors; however, the prevalence of most conditions was highest among transgender or gender non-conforming (TGNC) individuals, according to results published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

If the Houthis make good on their threats, it would be an escalation of their attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. To date, they claim attacks have been limited to ships going to Israel or those with connections to Israel, the United States and the United Kingdom. The Pentagon disputes that claim and has said that the Houthis have targeted multinational ships. In at least one instance, the Houthis have targeted at least one Chinese ship, according to USNI News’ timeline of activity in the Red Sea. It is possible that the Houthis were...

Frank Luntz had 14 swing voters during the debate. 12 of the 14 swing to Trump. Luntz Shocked!

House Democrats spent their Friday morning huddling on the floor in hushed, anguished conversations about President Joe Biden's debate performance. "It was a f------ disaster," one member said, adding that a lot of members believe Biden should suspend his campaign. "If something happens it has to happen in the next couple of days," another House Democrat told ABC News, adding that the only House lawmaker who may be capable of getting through to Biden is Nancy Pelosi, "Catholic to Catholic."

The angry deportees narrated their treatment, alleging they were unfairly treated in the European country.The 103 Nigerians arrived at the Abuja airport on June 28, 2024 onboard the Southwind airlines flight. One hundred and three Nigerians on Friday arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, the nation’s capital. They were part of those deported from the Republic of Turkey. They arrived at the pilgrims’ wing of the airport at about 6:45 pm on the Southwind Airlines flight with registration number TC-GRB. Upon their arrival, they were received by multiple agencies of government like the National Emergency Management Agency...

The Democrats had plenty of time to edge Biden out. Despite all the talk, no one seriously tried to do it.Now they’re stuck.The DNC rigged the primaries for Biden. He’s the nominee. There are possible convention challenges, but they’re a longshot because the power behind Joe Biden isn’t Jill Biden (many seem to think that a D of Ed community college talent is the Machiavelli here), but a network of political careerists who are using him and who in traditional fashion control the DNC. They’d have to be dealt in or crushed and the whole show would further wreck the...

"And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Matthew...

The new rules allow them to sign job contracts with approved employers. It's an unprecedented effort to regulate the sector, but not everyone is convinced, as Euronews Witness reports. In Belgium prostitutes will soon have access to the same social rights as other employees, thanks to a law adopted in May 2024. The new rules allow them to sign job contracts with approved employers. It's an unprecedented effort to regulate the sector, but not everyone is convinced, as Euronews Witness reports. Previously, hostess bars and erotic massage parlors in Belgium operated in a legal gray area: sex workers were paid...

Will Democrats replace Joe Biden as their presidential nominee? It’s not that simple, logistically or politically, as long he’s still alive. States have pretty strict rules on last-second ballot changes, but Democrats have always found ways to get courts to rewrite laws for them at the last second. Just look at what they did for Frank Lautenberg and Robert Torricelli in New Jersey. It would be a heavy lift but not an impossible one. The real problem for Democrats is political: Removing Biden as nominee requires them to deny and reject the election results of their voters in all 50...

At least 289 seats are needed for a parliamentary majority, and National Rally is predicted to get between 260 and 295 seats. The latest poll suggests that the far right has around 36 percent of the vote as France prepares for the parliamentary elections, the first round of which is on Sunday. The second round will be held on the following Sunday, 7 July. If National Rally wins, France will have the first far-right government since it was occupied by the Nazis in the Second World War.