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A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

(CTN NEWS) – BUFFALO, N.Y. – At least 18 people were murdered when a bitter winter storm ravaged the nation, cutting power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses and causing millions of people to worry that there would be a blackout on Christmas Eve.

Hurricane-force winds caused whiteout conditions as the storm unleashed its full fury on Buffalo, New York. The international airport of the city was closed, paralyzing emergency response attempts.

Authorities in the United States have blamed deaths on the storm’s impacts, including exposure, car accidents, a falling tree limb, and others.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

A winter storm rolls through Western New York Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022.(AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

In the Buffalo area, at least three individuals perished, including two who had medical issues in their homes.

But couldn’t be saved because emergency personnel couldn’t get to them due to the region’s record-breaking blizzard conditions.

Buffalo residents hurried out of their homes on Saturday in search of any place that offered heat due to the deep snow, single-digit temperatures, and day-old power outages.

Almost every fire engine in the city was stuck in the snow, according to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and the Buffalo Niagara International Airport would remain closed through Monday morning.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

Pedestrians walk along West Argyle Street in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022. (Pat Nabong/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

“No matter how many fire trucks we have, they cannot pass through the traffic right now,” Hochul stated.

A significant electrical grid operator warned the 65 million people it serves across the eastern United States that rolling blackouts may be necessary as blinding blizzards and freezing rain.

And bitter cold also knocked off power in locations from Maine to Seattle.

Power plants are having trouble working in the bitter cold, according to Pennsylvania-based PJM Interconnection, which has encouraged residents in 13 states to save electricity until Christmas morning.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

This satellite image made available by NOAA shows weather systems across North America on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022. (NOAA via AP)

Ten million people in the state of Tennessee and portions of six neighboring states receive electricity from the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Which gave local power providers the order to carry out planned blackouts but terminated the policy by Saturday afternoon.

An anticipated power outage in Nashville caused the start of the Tennessee Titans’ NFL game to be postponed by one hour.

More than 273,000 people were still without electricity in all six New England states. Maine was the hardest hit, and several utilities have warned that it might be days before power is restored.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

Although the number of powerless customers in North Carolina had decreased from over 485,000 to 169,000 as of this afternoon, utility officials predicted rolling blackouts will last for “the next few days.”

James Reynolds of Greensboro was one of those without power, and he reported that his housemate, a 70-year-old diabetic and severely arthritic person.

Spent the morning wrapped up next to a kerosene heater with the temperature inside “hovering in the 50s.”

According to Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, two persons in the Cheektowaga neighborhood of Buffalo died in their homes on Friday because emergency personnel could not get to them in time to treat their medical issues.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

Football fans watch pregame warmups before an NFL football game between the Cleveland Browns and the New Orleans Saints, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)

Adding that the blizzard may have been “the deadliest storm in our community’s history,” he stated that another person had died in Buffalo.

According to Poloncarz, an ambulance ride to a hospital took longer than three hours.

As of Saturday, Buffalo had received 28 inches (71 centimeters) of snow, according to forecasters. During a single storm, a record 6 feet (nearly 1.8 meters) of snow fell in certain regions just south of the city last month.

The most recent storm destroyed Brian LaPrade’s Buffalo home’s furnace, and when he woke up on Saturday morning, it was minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit inside (10 degrees Celsius).

LaPrade stated, “I had to go outside and clean the vents.” The snow was higher than my snow blower as it was.

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

The fountain is frozen as temperatures hovered in the mid 20’s at Jacob Schoen & Son Funeral Home in New Orleans, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022.(David Grunfeld/The Advocate via AP)

Large snow drifts, abandoned cars, and downed power lines hampered the work of the road ploughs.

Four people lost their lives in an accident involving 50 automobiles on the Ohio Turnpike.

Three more people died in separate collisions on icy northern Kansas roads on Wednesday, and a driver from Kansas City, Missouri, died on Thursday after sliding into a creek.

According to the Buckeye Rural Electric Cooperative, a utility worker in Ohio died on Friday while attempting to restore power.

The 22-year-old was claimed to have passed away in Lawrence County close to Pedro in “an electrical contact event.”

A Monster Storm Brings Rain, Snow, And Cold Across U.S, Killing 18 People

More than 800 runners dressed as Santa Claus braved near-freezing temperatures to participate in the Run Run Santa 1 Mile Saturday Dec. 24, 2022 in Viera, Fla. The temperatures were in the low 30s and the coldest in the race’s 7-year history. (Craig Bailey /Florida Today via AP)

A tree in Vermont crashed on a woman on Friday, breaking in the strong winds and killing her in the hospital.

As snow and subzero temperatures settled on the area, Colorado Springs police reported that they discovered the body of a person who seemed to be homeless.

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office said a 57-year-old lady died Friday after slipping through the ice on a river close to Janesville, Wisconsin.

Terry Henderson and her husband Rick were stranded in a severe traffic jam along Interstate 71 in Kentucky for 34 hours due to numerous incidents.

The truck drivers endured the wait in a vehicle equipped with a diesel heater, a bathroom, and a refrigerator but afterward regretted attempting to drive from Alabama to their home in the Akron, Ohio, area for Christmas.

Icicles hang from ornamental plants at sunrise Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022, in Plant City, Fla. Farmers spray their crops with sprinklers to help protect them. Temperatures overnight dipped into the mid-20s. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)

Terry Henderson said once they started moving again on Saturday, “We should have remained.”

The storm’s size was almost unheard of, extending from the Rio Grande near Mexico’s border to the Great Lakes in Canada.

According to the National Weather Service, temperatures fell below average from east of the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians, affecting around 60% of the country’s population.

More than 2,360 flights inside, into, or out of the United States were canceled on Saturday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware, as millions of Americans were flying in advance of Christmas.

As they awaited a U.S. Supreme Court judgement on pandemic-era limits that bar many from applying for asylum, migrants camping near the U.S. border in Mexico were experiencing exceptionally low weather.

A giant tree lies across West Delavan Avenue intersection and Bidwell Parkway in Buffalo, N.Y. on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022. (Derek Gee/The Buffalo News via AP)

Forecasters reported that a bomb cyclone occurs when atmospheric pressure rapidly decreases during a powerful storm.

Had formed close to the Great Lakes, causing blizzard-like conditions, including severe winds and snowfall.

Lake-effect snow, which occurs when cool air absorbs moisture from the warm water and then dumps it on land, is a common sight in Western New York. However, even locals reported poor conditions on Christmas Eve.

Latricia Stroud and her two kids, ages 1 and 12, have been stuck in their Buffalo home without heat or electricity since Friday afternoon because it is too snowy to leave.

Stroud told the AP, “I have to go over a snowbank to get out.” I need a ride to the warming center because there is one there.

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding, But Still Accounting 48% Search Revenue

Google

Google is so closely associated with its key product that its name is a verb that signifies “search.” However, Google’s dominance in that sector is dwindling.

According to eMarketer, Google will lose control of the US search industry for the first time in decades next year.

Google will remain the dominant search player, accounting for 48% of American search advertising revenue. And, remarkably, Google is still increasing its sales in the field, despite being the dominating player in search since the early days of the George W. Bush administration. However, Amazon is growing at a quicker rate.

google

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

Amazon will hold over a quarter of US search ad dollars next year, rising to 27% by 2026, while Google will fall even more, according to eMarketer.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the forecast.

Lest you think you’ll have to switch to Bing or Yahoo, this isn’t the end of Google or anything really near.

Google is the fourth-most valued public firm in the world. Its market worth is $2.1 trillion, trailing just Apple, Microsoft, and the AI chip darling Nvidia. It also maintains its dominance in other industries, such as display advertisements, where it dominates alongside Facebook’s parent firm Meta, and video ads on YouTube.

To put those “other” firms in context, each is worth more than Delta Air Lines’ total market value. So, yeah, Google is not going anywhere.

Nonetheless, Google faces numerous dangers to its operations, particularly from antitrust regulators.

On Monday, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that Google must open up its Google Play Store to competitors, dealing a significant blow to the firm in its long-running battle with Fortnite creator Epic Games. Google announced that it would appeal the verdict.

In August, a federal judge ruled that Google has an illegal monopoly on search. That verdict could lead to the dissolution of the company’s search operation. Another antitrust lawsuit filed last month accuses Google of abusing its dominance in the online advertising business.

Meanwhile, European regulators have compelled Google to follow tough new standards, which have resulted in multiple $1 billion-plus fines.

google

Pixa Bay

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

On top of that, the marketplace is becoming more difficult on its own.

TikTok, the fastest-growing social network, is expanding into the search market. And Amazon has accomplished something few other digital titans have done to date: it has established a habit.

When you want to buy anything, you usually go to Amazon, not Google. Amazon then buys adverts to push companies’ products to the top of your search results, increasing sales and earning Amazon a greater portion of the revenue. According to eMarketer, it is expected to generate $27.8 billion in search revenue in the United States next year, trailing only Google’s $62.9 billion total.

And then there’s AI, the technology that (supposedly) will change everything.

Why search in stilted language for “kendall jenner why bad bunny breakup” or “police moving violation driver rights no stop sign” when you can just ask OpenAI’s ChatGPT, “What’s going on with Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny?” in “I need help fighting a moving violation involving a stop sign that wasn’t visible.” Google is working on exactly this technology with its Gemini product, but its success is far from guaranteed, especially with Apple collaborating with OpenAI and other businesses rapidly joining the market.

A Google spokeswoman referred to a blog post from last week in which the company unveiled ads in its AI overviews (the AI-generated text that appears at the top of search results). It’s Google’s way of expressing its ability to profit on a changing marketplace while retaining its business, even as its consumers steadily transition to ask-and-answer AI and away from search.

google

Google has long used a single catchphrase to defend itself against opponents who claim it is a monopoly abusing its power: competition is only a click away. Until recently, that seemed comically obtuse. Really? We are going to switch to Bing? Or Duck Duck Go? Give me a break.

But today, it feels more like reality.

Google is in no danger of disappearing. However, every highly dominating company faces some type of reckoning over time. GE, a Dow mainstay for more than a century, was broken up last year and is now a shell of its previous dominance. Sears declared bankruptcy in 2022 and is virtually out of business. US Steel, long the foundation of American manufacturing, is attempting to sell itself to a Japanese corporation.

Could we remember Google in the same way that we remember Yahoo or Ask Jeeves in decades? These next few years could be significant.

SOURCE | CNN

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2024 | Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

trump

Washington — Trump Media,  The Supreme Court announced Monday that it will not hear an appeal from social media platform X about a search warrant acquired by prosecutors in the election meddling case against former President Donald Trump.

The justices did not explain their rationale, and there were no recorded dissents.

The firm, which was known as Twitter before being purchased by billionaire Elon Musk, claims a nondisclosure order that prevented it from informing Trump about the warrant obtained by special counsel Jack Smith’s team violated its First Amendment rights.

The business also claims Trump should have had an opportunity to exercise executive privilege. If not reined in, the government may employ similar tactics to intercept additional privileged communications, their lawyers contended.

trump

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

Two neutral electronic privacy groups also joined in, urging the high court to hear the case on First Amendment grounds.

Prosecutors, however, claim that the corporation never shown that Trump utilized the account for official purposes, therefore executive privilege is not a problem. A lower court also determined that informing Trump could have compromised the current probe.

trump

Trump utilized his Twitter account in the weeks preceding up to his supporters’ attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to spread false assertions about the election, which prosecutors claim were intended to create doubt in the democratic process.

The indictment describes how Trump used his Twitter account to encourage his followers to travel to Washington on Jan. 6, pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to reject the certification, and falsely claiming that the Capitol crowd, which battered police officers and destroyed glass, was peaceful.

musk trump

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

That case is now moving forward following the Supreme Court’s verdict in July, which granted Trump full immunity from criminal prosecution as a former president.

The warrant arrived at Twitter amid quick changes implemented by Musk, who bought the company in 2022 and has since cut off most of its workforce, including those dedicated to combating disinformation and hate speech.

He also welcomed back a vast list of previously banned users, including Trump, and endorsed him for the 2024 presidential election.

SOURCE | AP

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The Supreme Court Turns Down Biden’s Government Appeal in a Texas Emergency Abortion Matter.

Supreme Court

(VOR News) – A ruling that prohibits emergency abortions that contravene the Supreme Court law in the state of Texas, which has one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the country, has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Supreme Court upheld this decision.

The justices did not provide any specifics regarding the underlying reasons for their decision to uphold an order from a lower court that declared hospitals cannot be legally obligated to administer abortions if doing so would violate the law in the state of Texas.

Institutions are not required to perform abortions, as stipulated in the decree. The common populace did not investigate any opposing viewpoints. The decision was made just weeks before a presidential election that brought abortion to the forefront of the political agenda.

This decision follows the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that ended abortion nationwide.

In response to a request from the administration of Vice President Joe Biden to overturn the lower court’s decision, the justices expressed their disapproval.

The government contends that hospitals are obligated to perform abortions in compliance with federal legislation when the health or life of an expectant patient is in an exceedingly precarious condition.

This is the case in regions where the procedure is prohibited. The difficulty hospitals in Texas and other states are experiencing in determining whether or not routine care could be in violation of stringent state laws that prohibit abortion has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints concerning pregnant women who are experiencing medical distress being turned away from emergency rooms.

The administration cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was presented to it in Idaho at the beginning of the year. The justices took a limited decision in that case to allow the continuation of emergency abortions without interruption while a lawsuit was still being heard.

In contrast, Texas has been a vocal proponent of the injunction’s continued enforcement. Texas has argued that its circumstances are distinct from those of Idaho, as the state does have an exemption for situations that pose a significant hazard to the health of an expectant patient.

According to the state, the discrepancy is the result of this exemption. The state of Idaho had a provision that safeguarded a woman’s life when the issue was first broached; however, it did not include protection for her health.

Certified medical practitioners are not obligated to wait until a woman’s life is in imminent peril before they are legally permitted to perform an abortion, as determined by the state supreme court.

The state of Texas highlighted this to the Supreme Court.

Nevertheless, medical professionals have criticized the Texas statute as being perilously ambiguous, and a medical board has declined to provide a list of all the disorders that are eligible for an exception. Furthermore, the statute has been criticized for its hazardous ambiguity.

For an extended period, termination of pregnancies has been a standard procedure in medical treatment for individuals who have been experiencing significant issues. It is implemented in this manner to prevent catastrophic outcomes, such as sepsis, organ failure, and other severe scenarios.

Nevertheless, medical professionals and hospitals in Texas and other states with strict abortion laws have noted that it is uncertain whether or not these terminations could be in violation of abortion prohibitions that include the possibility of a prison sentence. This is the case in regions where abortion prohibitions are exceedingly restrictive.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which resulted in restrictions on the rights of women to have abortions in several Republican-ruled states, the Texas case was revisited in 2022.

As per the orders that were disclosed by the administration of Vice President Joe Biden, hospitals are still required to provide abortions in cases that are classified as dire emergency.

As stipulated in a piece of health care legislation, the majority of hospitals are obligated to provide medical assistance to patients who are experiencing medical distress. This is in accordance with the law.

The state of Texas maintained that hospitals should not be obligated to provide abortions throughout the litigation, as doing so would violate the state’s constitutional prohibition on abortions. In its January judgment, the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals concurred with the state and acknowledged that the administration had exceeded its authority.

SOURCE: AP

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