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Twin Tiers Living

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Posts posted by Twin Tiers Living


  1. Quote

     

    “If these tariffs are allowed to persist, ultimately it’s going to make its way to the consumer,” said Steve Lamar, president and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association.

    Another trade group, Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America, provided estimates of the price increases that could be in store for shoes, noting 99% of the pairs sold in the U.S. are imports. Work boots made in China that now retail for $77 would go up to $115, while customers would pay $220 for running shoes made in Vietnam currently priced at $155, the group said. 

    FDRA President Matt Priest predicted lower-income families and the places they shop would feel the impact most. He said a pair of Chinese-made children’s shoes that cost $26 today will likely carry a $41 price tag by the back-to-school shopping season, according to his group’s calculations.

     

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  2. Screenshot 2025-04-04 at 10.41.18 AM.png

    Webb observed a surprising and extremely distant galaxy that existed 330 million years after the big bang, during what we call the universe’s “era of reionization.” This galaxy was emitting ultraviolet light at a specific wavelength that would typically have been absorbed by neutral hydrogen atoms prevalent at this point in the universe’s history. During the era of reionization, this neutral hydrogen was gradually ionized by the ultraviolet light emitted by newly forming stars. This is an ongoing process over hundreds of millions of years - and at just 330 million years after the big bang, there should still have been enough neutral hydrogen to shield this galaxy from Webb’s view - and yet Webb saw a strong signal from it.

    Image description: A two panel image. At left, hundreds of tiny galaxies are scattered across the black background of space. A small portion of the sky near the bottom is outlined with a white box. Lines extend from the corners of the box to the right panel. At right, a small red dot at the middle is highlighted with white lines and labeled redshift z = 13. At upper left, a face-on spiral galaxy is labeled z = 0.63. At lower right, an edge-on spiral galaxy is labeled z = 0.70. A handful of other small background galaxies are seen against the black background of space. At lower right, the panel is labeled JADES-GS-z-13-1.

    • Like 1

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    CNN — Restaurant industry icons where Americans went out for decades for wings, dinner, and celebrations are facing a crisis.

    Hooters filed for bankruptcy this week, the latest casual dining chain to go belly up. Red Lobster, TGI Fridays and Buca di Beppo also filed for bankruptcy in the last year. Meanwhile, sales at Denny’s, Applebee’s, Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, Red Robinand Cracker Barrel’s are dropping, and they are shuttering hundreds of restaurants.

    Casual dining chains typically cater to lower and middle-income families looking for a sit-down meal, but diners are abandoning these companies as their disposable income shrinks. These restaurants have been hiking menu prices at the same time their customer base has been squeezed by the rising cost of living. Since 2019, restaurant prices have increased 34%, outpacing the overall growth of inflation during that same period, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

     

    Read more here.

    Have you cut back on eating at chain restaurants? If so, why?


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    WASHINGTON (AP) — Former heart surgeon and TV pitchman Dr. Mehmet Oz was confirmed Thursday to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. 

    Oz became the agency’s administrator in a party line 53-45 vote. 

    The 64-year-old will manage health insurance programs for roughly half the country, with oversight of Medicare, Medicaid or Affordable Care Act coverage. He steps into the new role as Congress is debating cuts to the Medicaid program, which provides coverage to millions of poor and disabled Americans.

     

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — A vaccine to fight dementia? It turns out there may already be one – shots that prevent painful shingles also appear to protect aging brains.

    A new study found shingles vaccination cut older adults’ risk of developing dementiaover the next seven years by 20%.

    The research, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, is part of growing understanding about how many factors influence brain health as we age – and what we can do about it.

    “It’s a very robust finding,” said lead researcher Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer of Stanford University. And “women seem to benefit more,” important as they’re at higher risk of dementia.

     

    Read the rest here.


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    U.S. row crop farmers produce enormous quantities of food, and they depend on selling lots of it overseas. They thrive under free trade policies.

    They're also big spenders, laying out billions on the heavy equipment, seed and fertilizer they use.

    Which makes them doubly vulnerable to tariffs.

    "These tariffs are just absolutely bad news," said Vance Ehmke from the western Kansas farm his ancestors homesteaded in 1885. "They cause the prices for everything that we buy to go up, and the price for everything that we sell to go down. I mean, it is being economically drawn and quartered."

    Lots of farmers say they were stretched to the breaking point before the tariffs took hold. The price of tractors has jumped 50% in five years, according to Successful Farming magazine; fertilizer has more than doubled, but commodity prices are low. Ehmke said the price of wheat started to climb earlier this year but plummeted when Trump began talking about broad tariffs.

    "I mean, that was a $30,000, $35,000, $40,000 hit that we've taken, and I'm laying a huge amount of that right at Trump's feet," Ehmke said.

     

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    BEIJING - China has hit back at new U.S. tariffs with sweeping levies of its own on American products, sharply escalating the trade war between the world's two biggest economies.

    China's finance ministry said on Friday a 34% tariff will be imposed on all U.S. imports from April 10, mirroring President Trump's levy on Chinese goods that was announced as part of his global tariff blitz on Wednesday.

    "China urges the United States to immediately lift its unilateral tariff measures and resolve its trade differences through consultations in an equal, respectful and mutually beneficial manner," the ministry said in a statement.

    The research firm Capital Economics said the Chinese retaliation did not bode well for prospects of finding a resolution.

    "This is an aggressive, escalatory response that makes a near-term deal to end the trade war between the two superpowers highly unlikely," its analysts wrote in a note.

     

    Read the rest here.


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    ELMIRA, N.Y. (WENY) -- The Elmira City Planning Commission approved plans for a travel center Thursday night, but added a few contingencies to the approval. Developers say the steps needed are typical with a project like the travel center.

    "We were expecting we'd need some permits from DOT, DEC, and the stormwater coalition is pretty standard for these types of projects," said Luke Grasmeyer, an architect with HUNT Engineers, the company submitting the travel center to the planning commission.

    The commission is looking for a stormwater permit, an approved lighting plan from the Code Enforcement, and Department of Transportation permits before the construction can begin. Grasmeyer said getting these permits shouldn't delay the project.

    "I think the goal would be we'll open before the season to, that we can't pave so early fall, late summer, something like that," said Grasmeyer.

     

    Read more here.

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    Bill Burr won’t back down.

    The comedian snapped at a group of reporters who pressed him about current events at the 2025 Mark Twain Prize for American Humor ceremony, where his pal Conan O’Brien was honored.

    In a viral video circulating on X, a journalist told Burr she had been “reading up” on his support of accused UnitedHealthcare CEO shooter Luigi Mangione and asked him to clarify his previous comments as he walked the red carpet at the March 23 event.

    “I don’t think you read up on it because I said what I felt about it, and I said what a lot of people said,” he bluntly replied of his “Free Luigi” stance.

     

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    Or you can just watch it here:

     


  10. The Chemung County Sheriff’s Office announces the arrest of 49-year-old Warren F. Morrison of Ashland for Rape in the First Degree, a Class B Violent Felony.

    According to Chemung County Sheriff William Schrom, on March 31st, 2025, a School Resource Officer from the Chemung County Sheriff’s Office Civil / Community Services Division was advised by a juvenile female that she and other females were being sexually assaulted by Morrison over a number of years.

    Screenshot 2025-04-02 at 10.15.07 AM.png

    The Chemung County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division took over the investigation and began working in conjunction with the Chemung County Child Protective Services, as well as the Chemung County Child Advocacy Center.

    As a result of the investigation, Morrison was arrested for Rape in the First Degree and arraigned in Ashland Town Court. He was remanded to the Chemung County Jail with no bail.

    The sheriff's department says the  investigation is continuing, and more charges are expected.


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    NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are falling Wednesday in the final hours before President Donald Trump unveils the tariffs he promised as part of his “ Liberation Day ” that could drastically remake the global economy and trade.

    The S&P 500 was 0.7% lower in early trading, but it’s had a pattern this week of opening with sharp losses only to finish the day higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 240 points, or 0.6%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.9% lower.

     

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    PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A decision on the future of the tush push has been pushed until next month.

    NFL team owners had been set to vote Tuesday on Green Bay’s proposal to ban the play that’s helped the Philadelphia Eagles win one Super Bowl and reach another, but it was tabled until May.

    Team owners approved modifying the kickoff rule, expanding replay assist, revising overtime rules, along with other changes.

    Postponing the tush push vote means the debate will continue while teams gather more information. Proponents of the play and those who oppose it presented strong arguments while the league’s medical experts expressed safety concerns.

     

    Read more here.

    What do you think? Should the "tush push" be banned?


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    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Val Kilmer, the brooding, versatile actor who played fan favorite Iceman in “Top Gun,” donned a voluminous cape as Batman in “Batman Forever” and portrayed Jim Morrison in “The Doors,” has died. He was 65.

    Kilmer died Tuesday night in Los Angeles, surrounded by family and friends, his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, said in an email to The Associated Press. The New York Times was the first to report his death on Tuesday.

    Val Kilmer died from pneumonia. He had recovered after a 2014 throat cancer diagnosis that required two tracheotomies. 

     

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    • Sad 1

  14. Quote

     

    Palm Beach, Fla. — The Buffalo Bills have handed out four contract extensions this offseason to players entering the final year of their contracts.

    The one remaining candidate - Pro Bowl running back James Cook - apparently won’t join the club anytime soon.

    Bills general manager Brandon Beane spoke to reporters on Sunday at the NFL’s Annual Meeting from the Breakers resort. He said the focus has shifted away from contract negotiations.

    “At this point, we’re on to the draft once we got (Christian) Benford done," Beane said. “I don’t see us doing any deals anytime soon. We’re going to focus on the draft and getting our cap in order.”

     

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    When "Peanut" the squirrel was euthanized last fall after being seized by the state Department of Environmental Conservation in Chemung County, the news sparked an immediate backlash of public outrage and made national headlines for days.

    Now DEC's acting commissioner admits the situation could have been handled better and said the agency is reviewing its protocol for dealing with illegal wildlife.

    The controversy erupted in late October when DEC representatives showed up at the home of Peanut's owner, Mark Longo, of Pine City, armed with a search warrant.

     

    Read the rest here.


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    Winter squash are fairly easy to grow but they require quite a bit of space. Fortunately, if you have a smaller garden there are some bush and semi-bush varieties that can be grown.

    In addition to being delicious, most bush varieties mature faster than the larger vining types. A bush squash typically only takes up a 3×3-foot space. So you can fit three hills of squash (with 2-3 plants per hill) in a 6×6-foot area.

    Screenshot 2025-03-30 at 10.56.30 AM.png

    Semi-bush squash take up more room than the bush varieties but their vines remain shorter than the larger vining squash. They also have a tendency to produce a lot of fruit in the small amount of space they use.

    If you are short on space think about growing a bush or semi-bush variety. Keep in mind though, because the foliage produces the sugars that feed the fruits, some bush and semi-bush varieties can be lacking on flavor. But there are some that are great. Here are a few of my favorites that we find have good flavor:

    Bush Delicata

    Cucurbita pepo, open pollinated. These oblong-shaped squash have creamy white skin with green stripes and flecks. The flesh is smooth and nutty flavored. The storage life of this squash is a little shorter than the harder-skinned varieties. I find they store well for about 3-4 months.

     

    Read more here.


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    Asked by NBC News’ Kristen Welker in a phone interview about whether he pressured automakers to avoid raising prices after his 25% tariffs on imported cars and parts go into effect, Trump denied that he told CEOs to control costs.

    “No, I never said that,” Trump told Welker. “I couldn’t care less if they raise prices, because people are going to start buying American cars.”

     

    Source


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    Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane has once again worked his magic to extend a cornerstone player at a team-friendly rate.

    On Saturday, it was announced that the Bills and Christian Benford reached agreement on a four-year, $76 million extension. The deal comes out to $19 million on average, well below the asking price of top cornerbacks in the league.

     

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  19. Quote

     

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says Wednesday will be “Liberation Day” — a moment when he plans to roll out a set of tariffs that he promises will free the United States from foreign goods.

    The details of Trump’s next round of import taxes are still sketchy. Most economic analyses say average U.S. families would have to absorb the cost of his tariffs in the form of higher prices and lower incomes. But an undeterred Trump is inviting CEOs to the White House to say they are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in new projects to avoid the import taxes.

    It is also possible that the tariffs are short-lived if Trump feels he can cut a deal after imposing them.

    “I’m certainly open to it, if we can do something,” Trump told reporters. “We’ll get something for it.”

    At stake are family budgets, America’s prominence as the world’s leading financial power and the structure of the global economy.

    Here’s what you should know about the impending trade penalties:

    What exactly does Trump plan to do?

    He wants to announce import taxes, including “reciprocal” tariffs that would match the rates charged by other countries and account for other subsidies. Trump has talked about taxing the European Union, South Korea, Brazil and India, among other countries.

    As he announced 25% auto tariffs last week, he alleged that America has been ripped off because it imports more goods than it exports.

     

    Read the rest here.

     

     


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    LONDON (AP) — You can have your cake and eat it too — just do it slowly. 

    Experts tend to focus on the kinds of foods you can eat to improve your health. But the speed at which you devour your dinner matters just as much. There are risks with eating too fast — think stuck food and the potential to overeat before your brain tells you to stop. (Inhaling your food also risks annoying your slower-paced dining companions or the person who took the time to cook your meal.)

    Here are some tips from scientists on how to slow down and take a more mindful approach to consuming your diet.

     

    Find out more here. 


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    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Chamberlain, the handsome hero of the 1960s television series “Dr. Kildare” who found a second career as an award-winning “king of the miniseries,” has died. He was 90.

    Chamberlain died Saturday night in Waimanalo, Hawaii of complications following a stroke, according to his publicist, Harlan Boll.

     

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