January 21, 2022 4:37 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Meat Loaf, the rock superstar loved by millions for his “Bat Out of Hell” album and for such theatrical, dark-hearted anthems as “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” and “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” has died at age 74. A family statement provided by his longtime agent says the singer born Marvin Lee Aday died Thursday night. “Bat Out of a Hell,” his mega-selling collaboration with songwriter Jim Steinman, came out in 1977 and became one of the bestselling records in history. He was also known for his role in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and the 1993 single “I’d Do Anything for Love.”
January 21, 2022 4:18 am
(AP) – Candy maker Mars is giving a makeover to its six M&M’s characters as a way to promote inclusivity. The company said that it will provide a modern take on the appearances of the characters – which Mars calls “lentils” – and give them more nuanced personalities. The lentils, which are featured in red, green, orange, yellow, brown and blue, will also come in different shapes and sizes. Mars, whose brands also include Twix and Snickers, said that it will also put added emphasis on the ampersand in the M&M’s logo to demonstrate how the brand aims to bring people together. (Photo: ABC News)
January 21, 2022 4:16 am
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California would allow children age 12 and up to be vaccinated without their parents’ consent, the youngest age of any state, under a state senator’s proposal. Alabama allows such decisions at age 14, Oregon at 15, Rhode Island and South Carolina at 16. Only Washington, D.C., has a lower limit, at age 11. Sen. Scott Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco who proposed the change late Thursday, argued that California already allows those 12 and up to consent to certain vaccines and treatments. Wiener’s legislation is permissive, not a mandate, but any vaccination legislation has been hugely controversial in California and elsewhere.
January 21, 2022 4:15 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The annual anti-abortion rally in the nation’s capital sounded more like a victory celebration Friday. Speaker after speaker expressed a growing sense of optimism that their long-sought goal was finally in reach: a sweeping rollback of abortion rights in America. Thousands of anti-abortion protesters rallied in the bitter cold and then marched to the Supreme Court. The high court has indicated it will allow states to impose tighter restrictions on abortion with a ruling in the coming months – and possibly overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that affirmed the constitutional right to an abortion.
January 21, 2022 4:12 am
An Avella man was killed in a vehicle crash Thursday afternoon in Cross Creek Township. The Washington County Coroner’s office says 28 year old Zachary Noga lost control of his vehicle in the 200-block of Cross Creek Road just after 2 p.m. The vehicle left the roadway, traveled down an embankment and struck the exterior of a home. He was not wearing a seatbelt and was pronounced dead at the scene. A cause and manner of death are pending. State Police are investigating.
January 20, 2022 12:17 pm
A group of Ringgold residents have filed a civil lawsuit in Washington County Court, claiming the Ringgold School Board violated Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Law when they added an item to their agenda last month, amending the district’s health and safety plan requiring students and staff wear masks. Lane Turturice, who is representing the sixteen individuals, says the suit names the Ringgold School District and the five board members who voted to approve the measure. The suit claims the board deliberated and voted on the amendment at its December 15th meeting, but it was not included on the meeting’s posted agenda, as required by law. Turturice says the court is being asked to nullify the board’s decision. Turturice refused further comment at this time and attempts to reach the Ringgold solicitor, Tim Berggren, have been unsuccessful
January 20, 2022 8:48 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose to the highest level in three months as the fast-spreading omicron variant disrupted the job market. Jobless claims rose for the third straight week – by 55,000 to 286,000, highest since mid-October, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out weekly volatility, rose by 20,000 to 231,000, highest since late November. A surge in COVID cases has set back what had been a strong comeback from from last year’s short but devastating coronavirus recession.
January 20, 2022 4:20 am
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (AP) – Authorities say two U.S. Marines were killed and 17 others injured when the 7-ton truck they were riding in overturned near their North Carolina base. The State Highway Patrol said the truck was making a right turn onto a highway Wednesday afternoon when it lost control and overturned. A highway patrol spokesman, Lt. Devin Rich, said indications were that the truck was traveling too fast for the turn. The patrol says 17 Marines aboard the truck were ejected. It said a second vehicle trailing the truck hit one of those passengers. The accident occurred a few miles away from Camp Lejeune.
January 20, 2022 4:18 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden says he thinks Russia will invade Ukraine and is warning President Vladimir Putin that his country would pay a “dear price” in lives lost and a possible cutoff from the global banking system if it does. Biden also said a “minor incursion” by Russia would elicit a lesser response. He later sought to clarify that he was referring to a non-military action, such as a cyberattack, that would be met with a similar reciprocal response, and that if Russian forces cross the Ukrainian border, “that changes everything.” He was speaking at a news conference to mark his one-year anniversary in office.
January 20, 2022 4:17 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden acknowledges that the pandemic has exhausted and demoralized many Americans in his first year in office. Yet Biden is defending his administration’s efforts on the pandemic and noting the economy is actually surging despite concerns about inflation. He says he may well have to settle for “big chunks” of his stalled economic agenda being passed into law before the 2022 midterm elections. And he says voters will back Democrats in those elections – and support his efforts in the White House – so long as they are well informed. At a news conference marking his first year in office, Biden insisted he has “outperformed” expectations in dealing with the crises he’s faced.
