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Oscars snub Zelenskyy: Sorry, no gig for you

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made numerous public appearances since the beginning of Russia’s war on Ukraine, speaking at parliaments and cultural events across the world.But there’s one venue that keeps resisting the Ukrainian president: the Academy Awards ceremony.According to American pop culture outlet Variety, quoting “sources,” the organizer of the Oscars has refused to let Zelenskyy appear in their 95th awards ceremony, scheduled for overnight Sunday into Monday — though the magazine says the request was made by a top agent, Mike Simpson, and not Ukrainian authorities. The Academy declined to comment to Variety.Zelenskyy had already been snubbed by the Oscars last year. The American actress Amy Schumer, who was hosting the ceremony, said she had asked for the Ukrainian president to make an appearance, but was turned down.In the meantime, the Ukrainian president opened the Cannes Film Festival last May, and spoke at the Berlin Film Festival in February (both...

World War III? It’s close, Orbán claims

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

The likelihood of the war in Ukraine turning into a global conflict is growing, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Friday morning.Speaking on state-owned Kossuth Rádió, Hungary’s leader criticized Western capitals and accused Ukraine’s allies of promoting a conflict due to economic interests. “The world has never been so close,” Orbán said, to “a local war” turning into “a world war.” “The likelihood of this is increasing day by day,” he added. The Hungarian prime minister also said — without providing proof — that Kyiv’s partners could send troops to help Ukraine, which is battling against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion. “We are very close, in my opinion, for it to be put on the table as serious proposal for allied — the soldiers of countries allied with Ukraine — to also cross the border,” he said. Orbán, who has nurtured a close relationship with the Kremlin over the past decade, has come under fire both at hom...

Celtics take off for long road trip looking to build momentum with playoffs looming

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

The Celtics are heading out on a six-game road trip that will take them through four time zones starting on Saturday. After a feel-good win over the Blazers, it’s a chance for the C’s to build on some success and create momentum at a crucial juncture of their season.But Joe Mazzulla couldn’t care less about where they’re playing for the next 11 days.“The road trip doesn’t matter,” the Celtics coach said after Thursday’s practice. “It doesn’t matter if we’re playing at home or on the road. We have to play the games, we have to have the habits, we have to execute. So I don’t really give a crap about the road trip.“What I care about is the carryover and the awareness to the execution, how we manage the game and what that looks like when we do it well, and what it looks like when we don’t do it well.”Malcolm Brogdon said earlier this week the goal of the road trip is to go undefeated. On paper, that’s attainable. Four of the six games are against opponents with records at .500 or worse,...

EU agrees better energy efficiency Green Deal rules

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union member countries and negotiators from the EU Parliament have agreed on a provisional deal aimed at reducing energy consumption across the 27-nation bloc.Under the agreement, EU countries must achieve the goal collectively to ensure a reduction of consumption of at least 11.7% compared with the forecasts for 2030 that were made three years ago.The deal, which is part of the EU’s plans to become climate neutral by 2050, must be formally adopted by the Parliament and the Council — which brings together government ministers from each member state — to enter into force.The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, welcomed the provisional agreement, which also includes measures to tackle energy poverty. The agreed rules should also ensure that EU countries promote local heating and cooling plans in cities with more than 45,000 inhabitants.“Saving energy is a key step to saving the planet,” said Frans Timmermans, the executive Vice...

Versace reaches for the stars with glittery Hollywood show

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Decamping from her usual base in Milan to show her wares in Los Angeles — only three days before the Oscars — Donatella Versace says she was inspired by the energy, glamour and power of Hollywood. She had plenty of that, but needed one more thing to make it all work: good weather.And so, with rain expected on Friday, Versace was forced move her show ahead by a day. It may have been chaotic, but it was the right move. Her star-studded runway show Thursday took place on a cool but gorgeous Los Angeles evening on a spectacular rooftop overlooking the snow-capped San Gabriel mountains, sleek skyscrapers, and the Hollywood hills. Oh, and daylight ceded to darkness right as the show ended — just in time to turn on the floodlights, blast “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince and head to cocktails.The sun was still out when the crowd began making its way up to the roof of the imposing Pacific Design Center on Melrose Avenue, with its distinctive blue glass exterior. Guests included ...

Shiffrin leads giant slalom, closes in on 86th World Cup win

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

ARE, Sweden (AP) — Mikaela Shiffrin made a strong start Friday in her pursuit of a record-tying 86th World Cup victory by taking a big lead in the first run of a giant slalom.Shiffrin was more than half a second faster than her highest-ranked rivals with a smooth and fluent run in the sunshine at the lakeside resort in Are.The second run is later Friday.The 27-year-old American can move even with Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark with a victory. Stenmark won a record 86 World Cup races in the 1970s and 80s.___More AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/skiing and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsThe Associated Press

In The News for March 10 : How did Canada’s job market fare last month?

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of March 10 …What we are watching in Canada …Statistics Canada is set to release its February labour force survey this morning.The data will give an update on how the labour market is faring amid high interest rates and a slowing economy.In January, the economy added 150,000 jobs, which was a higher number than expected, while the unemployment rate was hovering at five per cent. RBC is forecasting employment ticked up slightly last month while the unemployment rate edged up to a “still very low” 5.1 per cent. At its latest interest rate announcement, the Bank of Canada held its key interest rate steady but flagged that the labour market is still too tight. The central bank is expecting higher interest rates to eventually weigh on employment and dampen wage growth. —Also this …Airports and airl...

Global stocks, Wall St. futures sink ahead of US jobs update

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets and Wall Street futures fell Friday ahead of a U.S. job market update amid unease about possible further interest rate hikes.Markets in London, Shanghai, Frankfurt and Tokyo declined. Oil prices were lower.Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index fell Thursday by its biggest one-day margin this year after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned rates might be raised faster than expected to cool stubbornly high inflation.Traders looked ahead to U.S. government hiring data due out Friday after other indicators showed the job market has stayed strong despite repeated interest rate hikes. That is good for workers, but Fed officials worry rising wages might fuel inflation. That might lead to more rate hikes to dampen business activity and hiring.Fed officials are “clearly messaging that rates will move higher,” Rubeela Farooqi of High Frequency Economics said in a report.In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London fell 1.5% to 7,760.88 and Frank...

Head of Google Canada set to return to House of Commons committee

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

OTTAWA — The head of Google Canada is set to return to a House of Commons committee to talk about the company’s decision to block news access to some of its users. Sabrina Geremia was summoned by MPs, and was originally scheduled to appear in front of the heritage committee on Monday. But technical difficulties delayed the meeting and MPs invited her back today, while also requesting documents related to Google’s news ban. Three other Google executives, including its CEO, have refused a summons to appear. New Democrat MP Peter Julian says he plans to introduce a motion to notify the House of Commons that there was a refusal of the summons.Google says it is running a five-week test to limit news as a possible response to the government’s proposed Online News Act, which would require tech companies to pay news organizations for linking to or otherwise repurposing their content online. This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2023.The Canadian P...

Climate change slowing down, not speeding up, movement of large Arctic rivers: study

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 07:00:00 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — Scientists have long believed that rapid warming in the Arctic would cause river channels to move faster, but a new study has found the opposite may be true for large, winding rivers in the region.The paper, published in the scientific journal Nature and Climate Change, details how an international team of researchers tested this theory by analyzing satellite imagery of rivers in Alaska, Yukon and the Northwest Territories over time. They found migration rates of these rivers, rather than increasing, decreased overall by about 20 per cent between 1972 and 2020. “My reaction was ‘oh boy, it’s going to be hard to convince people about this,'” lead author Alessandro Ielpi said of the findings. “It’s potentially a disruptive idea. It may potentially reshape the way we think about northern environments and the way they are adapting to the changing climate.”Ielpi, an assistant professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and G...