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COVID summer surge: Should you get a booster now or wait?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – COVID cases are still on the rise, but an updated vaccine could be more than a month away. That leaves some concerned people in a predicament: get boosted now, or wait?As of August, the latest version of the vaccine we have available is the "bivalent" shot, which was released last year. It was designed to target the highly contagious omicron variant of COVID, which is still the dominant variant to this day. However, studies show the bivalent shot's effectiveness wanes substantially over time.And over the past year, omicron has spawned many subtypes, each with a name composed of letters and numbers. The most common over much of the past year have been the XBB strains.The new booster, which should be available by end of September or early October, is a monovalent vaccine, specifically made to target XBB. As COVID surge continues, is the booster still working against new variants? Whether they want the protection now or not, many people have to wait for the XBB-targeting ...

'It's game over': What Prigozhin's end means for Wagner Group

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

(The Hill) – Wagner Group’s fate is hanging in the balance after leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and top field commander Dmitry Utkin were both presumably killed in a fiery plane crash.The private military company — a once wide-reaching empire that has helped prop up authoritarian regimes in several African countries and played a significant role in Russia’s invasions of Ukraine — will increasingly come under Russian President Vladimir Putin’s control, analysts told The Hill.Putin and his military officials must decide what parts of the group to keep, what to discard — and how to keep the mercenaries in line.  US citizens urged to leave Belarus immediately John Hardie, the deputy director of the Russia Program for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said Wagner will be easier for Moscow to control “with Prigozhin, Utkin, and other top figures out of the picture.”“But without its core commanders, it won’t be the same organization,” he wrote in an analysis sent to The Hill. “An...

Reina, a once-closed Rainey St. bar, reopens at new location

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – A little over a year after closing its Rainey Street location, Reina, a once-popular Austin bar, announced it has reopened. Reina announced in August 2022 that it could no longer operate out of its Rainey Street locale due to city plans to develop the area for additional residential buildings.  MORE: 'We knew this was coming’: Another bar on Rainey Street set to close for new residential development projects On Wednesday, Reina staff posted on social media that it would open its doors again – this time, a couple of blocks over at 214 Trinity St. On Instagram, the Reina account said the bar would host a soft opening at its new downtown location featuring three local DJs. The popular bar has yet to say when the doors of the new venue will open permanently. 

St. Louis man sentence for life for Spanish Lake murder

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

ST. LOUIS – A St. Louis man has been sentenced to life in prison along with an additional 15 years in connection to a murder that occurred in Spanish Lake in spring 2021.On Friday, August 25, Christopher Bolden, 32, was sentenced to life in prison plus 15 years for the murder of Antonio Green on April 20, 2021. During the sentencing hearing, the victim's mother and father both addressed the court.On May 18, a St. Louis County jury found Bolden guilty of Murder 2nd Degree, Unlawful Use of a Weapon, two counts of Armed Criminal Action, and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.Bolden committed the murder by firing into a parked vehicle in St. Louis County. At the time, Bolden was a convicted felon. The victim, Antonio Green, was in a relationship with Bolden's ex-girlfriend, the mother of two of Bolden's children.  Horrific crimes of serial killer Timothy Wayne Krajcir Bolden had contacted his ex-girlfriend over 100 times through calls and texts before driving to her resid...

The Freak Brothers Team Up with Weedmaps for Season 2

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

Former LA Weekly cover boys, The Freak Brothers, are teaming up with Weedmaps for in-episode integrations for cannabis enthusiasts, starting with the launch of Season 2 today. The Freak Brothers have been getting laughs out of cannabis enthusiasts the world over for 55 years. Thanks to WTG Enterprises, the producer of The Freak Brothers and Fox’s streaming platform Tubi, more people than ever have access to the trio’s cannabis-fueled adventures alongside their talking cat. The production value of the first season was way beyond most cartoons. In addition to great animation, the voice cast featured Woody Harrelson, John Goodman, Pete Davidson, Tiffany Haddish, Adam Devine, Blake Anderson, Andrea Savage, La La Anthony and ScHoolboy Q. All of those big names are returning and they’ll be adding Joe Sikora to the mix for a special guest appearance.Weedmaps, one of the most recognizable names in cannabis, is obviously hyped to be in this effort to help further cannabis into the mainstream...

Mailbag: All about Washington State and Oregon State, from the Pac-2 and a reverse merger with the MW to the bylaws and “war chest”

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

Given the quantity of questions this week and the unresolved future of the Pac-12’s remaining schools, the Hotline will publish a two-part mailbag. The first installment appeared Friday.Send questions to [email protected] and include ‘mailbag’ in the subject line. Or hit me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline.Please note: Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.Do Oregon State and Washington State need the Pac-12 to stay intact for them to retain the assets? Otherwise, it would be split between all teams? — @CamKodeWe have a lot to address with the Beavers and Cougars, and this is a great place to start.First, let’s assume the ACC offers membership to Stanford and Cal next week. (We attach a 70 percent probability to that outcome. Momentum is trending in favor of the schools following their financial concessions.)At that point, the Beavers and Cougars would be the only remaining members of the Pac-12 as of next summer.Best we can tell, they w...

Inman: Trey Lance exits with 49ers at doorstep of Super Bowl season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

SANTA CLARA – Trey Lance is gone, not long after Jimmy Garoppolo. That leaves the 49ers up to Brock Purdy. Again.Isn’t this actually like last season’s playoff push, other than Lance and Garoppolo are not on the roster anymore, not in the locker room, not in meetings, not in practices, not in the 49ers’ quarterback-centric picture?“It just sort of goes to show you, in the NFL, with the positions and the depth chart, it all can change overnight,” Purdy said Friday night, after the 49ers put to rest both the preseason and the Lance era. “… Yes, it is wild. Sort of like a, ’Welcome to the NFL’ kind of thing.”More players will leave to reach the 53-man roster limit by Tuesday at 1 p.m., and they’ll follow a much different exit than Lance, who’s headed to the Dallas Cowboys for a fourth-round draft pick in return.The remaining 49ers are drag racing to Lombardi Trophy Ave., all due respect to the abandoned car on the shoulder (Lance), the absent NFL Defensive Playe...

Presto’s Pick: Navy and Notre Dame kick off the year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

The D.C. area pools may still be open, but my calendar officially turns a page this weekend. I like to say that college football offers the best regular season in sports but the branding of “Week Zero” keeps it from being perfect.I don’t mind the soft start to the season but “Week Zero” makes one want to say “Weak Zero.” And it’s still August! Do we have to do this? Can’t summer last just one more week? My U.Va. tailgating pals Kippy and Buffy aren’t even back from their cottage in the Outer Banks! See you next week for the first full edition of “Presto’s Picks.” Until then …Tai Lavatai was hurt for last year’s game with Notre Dame. Will he make the difference this season? (AP Photo/LM Otero)Navy vs. No. 13 Notre Dame, 2:30 p.m., NBCSo let me get this straight-the Midshipmen are facing the Fighting Irish in the capital of Ireland? Talk about a built-in home field disadvantage. This will be the third ...

Denver weather: Below normal temperatures and a few more showers this weekend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) —  Denver's weather will stay cooler than normal through the weekend with the chance for a few more showers and thunderstorms.  Weather today: Cool, few late day stormsSaturday will start mainly cloudy ahead of an increasing chance for afternoon showers and thunderstorms.  Rain chances are looking much lower than Friday, and will be mainly concentrated over the foothills west of Denver as well as the Palmer Divide south of the city.  This will help limit high temperatures to the mid 70sWeather tonight: Clearing, seasonalSaturday evening storms will dry out ahead of overnight clearing.  Low temperatures will fall to the mid 50s, which is right in line with normal for this time of year. Looking ahead: Few storms to start the week ahead of sunshine Scattered late-day showers and thunderstorms continue on Sunday and Monday. Temperatures both days will stay below normal, reaching the lower 80s Sunday, then 70s on Monday.&nbs...

Longtime ‘The Price Is Right’ host Bob Barker dead at 99

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:07:23 GMT

Bob Barker, the longtime host of the TV game show “The Price Is Right,” has died at the age 99.Roger Neal, his longtime publicist, made the announcement Saturday. “It is with profound sadness that we announce that the World’s Greatest MC who ever lived, Bob Barker, has left us,” Neal said in a statement. There was no immediate cause of death. The 19-time Emmy Award winner taped his last The Price is Right show on June 6, 2007.Barker was also a lifetime animal lover and became a vegetarian with the help of his wife Dorothy Jo who passed in 1981. More to come