March 29, 2024 4:53 am
The Penn Highlands Mon Valley Hospital sponsored an educational event Thursday. The “Breaking Barriers: Understanding Substance Use Disorder, Trauma and Stigma” allowed addiction and recovery experts to weigh in on issues that hinder recovery for addicts. Leading off the discussion was Joey Pagano. He is a licensed social worker and Project Supervisor for SPHS and author of the book “No Addict Left Behind”. Pagano spoke of his experiences in trying to break his addiction and the stigma he faced from not only people in the general public, but from medical personnel that would tell him that he would never get clean. He also spoke of education. He stressed that in 2024, children are much more advanced and prevention education must be integral not only in high schools, but in middle schools as well. Dr. Gopi Vadlamudi is the Medical Director of hospital’s CNX Foundation Substance Recovery Unit. He spoke of to the way substances affect the brain. He stated that it could take up to five years from the first SUD event before someone actually seeks treatment. If that person maintains sobriety, they are still susceptible to relapse for an additional five years. He says that it takes that long for the brain to recover from the damage caused by the abuse of the chosen substance. Adam Gillingham is the Lead Counselor for the Substance Recovery Unit. He says that it is important for the hospital to build a solid base for a patient to recover, but it is equally important for that patient to find appropriate surroundings once they leave to continue their recovery. Rachel Carpenter from the University of Pittsburgh Program Evaluation and Research Unit presented information that reminded the community that addiction is a disease. It is initially set off by some sort of trauma and that stigma about addiction is the main reason that it takes so long for addicts to seek treatment.
March 29, 2024 2:46 am
(AP) – Now we know what Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog who predicts whether an early spring will arrive each Feb. 2, does on the other 364 days. The Pennsylvania group that handles Phil, and his groundhog wife, Phyliss, says the couple have become parents. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club said in a Facebook post Wednesday that Phyliss recently gave birth to two healthy babies. It did not specify their sex or give names for either one. “We’re pleased to announce that Punxsutawney Phil has had his first children; we believe there are two baby groundhogs and that Phil and Phyllis have started a family,” said Thomas Dunkel, president of a tuxedo-clad group called The Inner Circle that carries on the groundhog tradition each year. “We’re pleased about it, and I talked to Phil with my cane, which lets me speak Groundhogese, and Phil could not be more excited that he started a family.” Dunkel said a club member discovered the babies Saturday when he came to feed their parents fruit and vegetables. Phil emerges from his burrow each year the morning of Feb. 2. If he sees his shadow, tradition holds, there will be six more weeks of winter. This year, he did not see his shadow, heralding an early spring. Although the best known, Phil is far from the only groundhog to try his hand at meteorology. There have been weather-predicting groundhogs in at least 28 U.S. states and Canadian provinces, and less formal celebrations far and wide. Phil and Phyliss live in climate-controlled quarters at the Punxsutawney Memorial Library. But like most growing families, they now need larger digs. The club plans to move them to a larger home on the library’s grounds. Like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, Punxsutawney Phil comes with his own mythology, including the claim that he will live forever, due to imbibing some magic juice called “The Elixir Of Life.” (His wife is not allowed to partake of the elixir, and thus, is not immortal. Where are groundhog suffragettes when they’re truly needed?)
March 28, 2024 4:11 pm
(AP) – The White House says it’s getting ready to welcome 40,000 people to its annual Easter Egg Roll. The egg-stravaganza was first held on the lawn in 1878. Guests this year will include thousands of military and veteran families, their caregivers and survivors. Members of the general public claimed tickets through an online public lottery. Monday’s events will be held on the South Lawn and the Ellipse and will have an “egg-ucation” component to fit with Jill Biden’s theme. The first lady is a career educator who still teaches English and writing at a northern Virginia community college. (Photo: AP)
March 28, 2024 4:07 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for a cryptocurrency fraud that a prosecutor has described as one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan imposed the sentence Thursday in a packed Manhattan courtroom. The 32-year-old Bankman-Fried was convicted in November of fraud and conspiracy charges brought after his once-soaring cryptocurrency trading platform and related companies collapsed into bankruptcy. Bankman-Fried was extradited to the U.S. in December 2022, five years after he started his businesses with plans to revolutionize the emerging cryptocurrency industry.
March 28, 2024 3:13 pm
BRIDGEVILLE, Pa. — A former Bridgeville police officer is facing aggravated assault by vehicle charges after a pedestrian crash in December 2023. The officer’s name is Daine Lower. Last year, a 25-year-old woman was walking across a pedestrian walkway when she was hit by the patrol car. She was taken to a hospital in critical condition. According to investigators, Lower’s body camera shows him using his cell phone video while driving, just before the crash. Police say he appeared to be watching a video on his phone. Video from the patrol vehicle shows the officer was traveling 29 mph when he hit the victim and that he didn’t hit the brakes at impact, according to Allegheny County police. Lower is also charged with reckless driving and recklessly endangering another person. Lower is no longer employed with the Bridgeville Police Department, according to police. Bridgeville Police Chief Chad King released a statement, saying in part that the department has fully cooperated with the investigation.
March 28, 2024 8:47 am
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Powerball jackpot has increased to $935 million after no one matched the six numbers drawn. The numbers selected Wednesday night were: 37, 46, 57, 60, 66 and the Powerball 8. The drawing came a day after a player in New Jersey won a $1.13 billion Mega Millions prize. The Powerball jackpot has been growing for months, since the last winner on New Year’s Day. The game’s odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to create big jackpots that will grab attention and increase sales. The $935 million prize for the next drawing Saturday night is for a sole winner who is paid over 30 years through an annuity. Winners usually opt for a cash payout, which for the next drawing would be an estimated $449.7 million.
March 28, 2024 4:57 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are teaming up with President Joe Biden for a glitzy reelection fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Thursday night’s event brings together more than three decades of Democratic leadership. It also provides a gilded exclamation mark on a recent burst of campaign travel by Biden, who visited several political battlegrounds in the last few weeks. Biden has a significant fundraising advantage over Donald Trump, with more than four times as much cash on hand by the end of February. His campaign said the New York City event will boost that total while rallying Democratic supporters.
March 28, 2024 4:56 am
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich marks a year behind bars on Friday following his arrest by Russian authorities who accuse him of espionage but have offered no supporting evidence. His friends and family say he is relying on his humor and resilience to get him through the days. Gershkovich, his employer and the U.S. government deny the allegations. He has been brought to court a dozen times for hearings that have rejected his appeals for freedom and always extend his pretrial detention. The court appearances give his family and friends a chance to see him, if only for a few minutes.
March 28, 2024 4:55 am
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Former Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut has died, according to his family. He was 82 and died Wednesday of complications from a fall. Lieberman nearly won the vice presidency on Democrat Al Gore’s ticket in the disputed 2000 White House race. Eight years later, he came close to joining the GOP ticket as John McCain’s running mate. The Democrat-turned-independent stepped down from the Senate in January 2013 after 24 years. His independent streak often irked Senate Democrats he aligned with. Yet his support for gay rights, civil rights, abortion rights and environmental causes at times won him the praise of many liberals over the years.
March 28, 2024 4:53 am
ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump argued in a court filing that the charges against him in the Georgia election interference case seek to criminalize political speech and advocacy conduct that is protected by the First Amendment. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee plans to hear arguments on that filing and on two pretrial motions filed by former Georgia Republican Party chair David Shafer during a hearing set for Thursday. Lawyers for Shafer argue that he acted legally when he and other state Republicans signed a certificate asserting that Trump won the 2020 presidential election in Georgia and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.
