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Wine growers in Maryland eligible for $1 million in grants

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

The Maryland Department of Commerce has $1 million in grants available for new and existing wineries in the state, and is now taking applications for the grants.The funds are made available through the state’s Winery and Vineyard Economic Development Grant Program, and administered by the Commerce Department’s Office of Tourism.Applicants don’t need to be large vineyards. Any winery consisting of at least one acre used solely to grow grapes qualifies.Eligible expenses that grants will cover are wide ranging, including barrels and bins, canopy management machines, fermenters, fruit harvesters, irrigation equipment, presses, seeders and tanks. The full list of eligible expenses is online.Grants can’t be used for some expenses, including labor, maintenance or utilities.The application deadline is Sept. 15, with grants approved by Dec. 15.There are more than 80 wineries in Maryland now, with four distinct wine growing regions, including the Eastern Shore, Souther...

Correction: Hawaii-Wildfires-Philanthropy story

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

In a story published August 31, 2023, about the People’s Fund of Maui, The Associated Press incorrectly identified the nonprofit managing the fund. It is the Entertainment Industry Foundation, not the Entertainment Industry Fund.Source

A federal judge strikes down a Texas law requiring age verification to view pornographic websites

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

A federal judge has struck down a Texas law requiring age verification and health warnings to view pornographic websites and blocked the state attorney general’s office from enforcing it.In a ruling Thursday, U.S. District Judge David Ezra agreed with claims that House Bill 1181, which was signed into law by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in June, violates free speech rights and is overbroad and vague.The state attorney general’s office, which is defending the law, immediately filed notice of appeal to the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in New Orleans.The lawsuit was filed Aug. 4 by the Free Speech Coalition, a trade association for the adult entertainment industry and a person identified as Jane Doe and described as an adult entertainer on various adult sites, including Pornhub.Judge Ezra also said the law, which was to take effect Friday, raises privacy concerns because a permissible age verification is using a traceable government-issued identification and the government...

Amrabat leaving Fiorentina could be biggest deal on quiet transfer deadline day in Italy

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

MILAN (AP) — With the top Serie A teams having completed most of their transfer business, the biggest move of Friday’s deadline day in Italy could be a player leaving the country.Manchester United seems like the likely destination for Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat. The English club is reportedly set to pay 10 million euros ($11 million) for an initial loan deal with an option to buy the Morocco international for a further 20 million euros ($22 million).Amrabat was largely off the radar outside Italy before an outstanding World Cup. He was one of the players of the tournament, the shield for a Moroccan defense that didn’t concede a goal by an opposition player until the semifinals.The 27-year-old Amrabat hasn’t featured in either of Fiorentina’s Serie A matches this season as a transfer away from the team looked ever more likely.The Milan teams could wrap up a busy transfer window with deadline day signings.Davy Klaassen flew into the Italian city for a medical at Inter ...

Germany, Slovenia, US and Lithuania make World Cup quarterfinals

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

Luka Doncic and Slovenia are headed to the World Cup quarterfinals. So are the U.S., Germany and Lithuania.Out of the mix: Olympic bronze medalist Australia.Half of the World Cup quarterfinals field is now set, after those four nations won their opening second-round games Friday to secure spots in the knockout round.The U.S. rallied to hold off Montenegro 85-73 in Group J, and Lithuania topped Greece 92-67 in the late game in that group. The Americans and Lithuania are both 4-0 now; Greece and Montenegro fell to 2-2 and cannot catch the leaders with one game remaining for those teams in Round 2.The top two teams in each of four, four-team, second-round groups make the quarterfinals.Slovenia topped Australia 91-80 and Germany ran past Georgia 100-73 in Group K second-round games Friday. Those outcomes ensured that Slovenia and Germany will finish first and second in that group, in some order, and both are off to the quarterfinals.Defending champion Spain and Serbia, two of the favori...

Biden approves Medal of Honor for Army helicopter pilot who rescued soldiers in a Vietnam firefight

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — As an Army first lieutenant and Cobra helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War, Larry Taylor flew hundreds of missions and saved countless lives. But no rescue flight was as daring, or as meaningful to Taylor, as the one for which he will receive the Medal of Honor from President Joe Biden. Biden will recognize Taylor at a ceremony next week, the White House announced Friday. On the night of June 18, 1968, Taylor took off in his attack helicopter to rescue four men on a long-range reconnaissance team that had become surrounded and was in danger of being overrun by enemy troops. He had to figure out a way to get them out, otherwise “they wouldn’t make it.”David Hill, one of the men Taylor saved that night, said Taylor’s actions were what “we now call thinking outside the box.”Hill and the three others were on a night mission to track the movement of enemy troops in a village near the Saigon River when they were found by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troo...

Danes orders Russia to reduce embassy staff to the same number that Denmark has in Moscow

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark on Friday informed Russia’s ambassador in Copenhagen that it must reduce its embassy staff to the same number that Denmark has in Moscow because talks to increase numbers have foundered over Russian attempts to sneak intelligence officers into Denmark. Copenhagen and Moscow “have been in long-term negotiation” regarding visas for employees at Denmark’s Embassy in Moscow, the Danish Foreign ministry said, but these talks “have not led to results due to repeated Russian attempts to include visa requests for Russian intelligence officers as part of those negotiations.”The brief Danish statement said that the Russian Embassy must be reduced to five diplomats and 20 administrative and technical staff. It gave Russia until Sept. 29 to comply. The announcement came on the same day as a Danish newspaper reported that a person it identified as a member of the Russian military intelligence agency GRU had been posted as diplomat in Copenhagen. Source

Governor votes on best food truck at state fair

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Eat like the governor and try out his favorite dish from the state fair this year. Gov. Jared Polis and attendees taste-tested the six dishes provided at the third annual Governor's Plate Competition at the Colorado State Fair. Stoke Pizza was picked as the favorite food truck. Stoke Pizza served up a wood-fired chorizo, elote and green chile pizza which won the Golden Plate award. 9 Colorado restaurants win Michelin award Six food trucks competed in the competition. To enter the competition, the competing trucks had to be registered as “Colorado Proud,” which means all the ingredients used in the dish were made in Colorado. “The Governor's Plate competition is the best chance to taste some of the most delicious Colorado Proud ingredients from talented Colorado chefs. This fun event, and really the entire State Fair, is a celebration of Colorado agriculture and all the delicious foods produced here,” said Polis. Stokes Pizza's ingredients included flour from Bould...

Mother calls for accountability after son’s arrest in Miami Gardens neighborhood

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

Miami Gardens police officers arrested a man after responding to an attempted burglary in a residential neighborhood. Now, a mother wants accountability after, she said, her son was wrongfully arrested outside his home. Around 2:30 a.m. Friday, officers first responded to the residence, located on Northwest 180th Terrance and Sunshine State Parkway, where video footage captured several police vehicles in the vicinity and officers with weapons drawn at the house. According to Miami Gardens officials, authorities were called out to the area in reference to an attempted burglary. Before law enforcement arrived, the victim held the suspect at gunpoint before fleeing the scene. At around 6 a.m., new witness details emerged regarding the incident. According to the mother of the man arrested following this incident, an officer initially mistook a man outside of the home for a burglary suspect. The mother said her son was merely on the phone outside his home. Officials said a police sergea...

Orlando gator hunters bag massive 920-pound alligator to control population

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 15:58:30 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. (WSVN) — Gator hunters in Orlando made a colossal discovery, capturing and ultimately dispatching a behemoth alligator weighing an astonishing 920 pounds. This extraordinary effort was part of an initiative to manage and control the local alligator population.Kevin Brotz, leading a team from Florida Gator Hunting, played a role in the successful operation. The massive alligator was found lurking in a lake, with bystanders nearby, making this achievement all the more remarkable and possibly close to a record-breaking feat.The Florida Wildlife Commission acknowledges some truly colossal gators, with the heaviest on record tipping the scales at over one thousand pounds. While the 920-pound gator may not have claimed the title of the heaviest on record, it remains a remarkable testament to the size and strength of these reptilian giants.Gator hunting in Florida is conducted with the primary objective of managing alligator populations to ensure the safety of both humans and...