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Southeast Asia’s first high speed railway, ‘Woosh,’ launches

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

By Achmad Ibrahim and Niniek Karmini | Associated PressJAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway on Monday as it was set to begin commercial operations, a key project under China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative that will drastically reduce the travel time between two key cities.The project has been beset with delays and increasing costs, and some observers doubt its commercial benefits. But Widodo has championed the 142-kilometer (88-mile) railway, which was issued its official operating license from the Transportation Ministry on Sunday.The $7.3 billion project, largely funded by China, was constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, known as PT KCIC, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd.The railway connects Jakarta with Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province, and will cut travel time betw...

UN approves Kenya-led force to help bring calm to Haiti

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

By Danica Coto | Associated PressSAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The U.N. Security Council voted Monday to send a multinational force to Haiti led by Kenya to help combat violent gangs in the troubled Caribbean country.The resolution drafted by the U.S. was approved with 13 votes in favor and two abstentions from China and the Russia Federation.The resolution authorizes the force to deploy for one year, with a review after nine months. It comes nearly a year after Haiti’s prime minister requested the immediate deployment of an armed force and would mark the first time a force is deployed to Haiti since a U.N.-approved mission nearly 20 years ago.“More than just a simple vote, this is in fact an expression of solidarity with a population in distress,” said Jean Victor Généus, Haiti’s foreign affairs minister. “It’s a glimmer of hope for the people who have been suffering for too long.”A deployment date has not been set, although U.S. Secretary of Sta...

Can San Jose speed up quick-build homeless sites? Mayor says emergency declaration will do the trick

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

Standing just yards away from one of San Jose’s numerous homeless encampments on the edge of Willow Glen under a Highway 87 overpass, Mayor Matt Mahan on Monday announced plans to reduce the time it takes to get an interim shelter up and running by cutting through the city’s bureaucratic red tape.The strategy will require the city to declare a shelter crisis emergency declaration, allowing certain land use provisions, building codes and procurement decisions to be bypassed — laws that elected officials say drag out the development of tiny home sites and safe parking locations to nearly two years. The mayor hopes to slash that time frame to less than a year.Mahan said he’s convinced the country’s 12th largest city must act as if it is responding to a widespread natural disaster, drawing parallels to San Francisco’s 1906 earthquake when a quarter of a million people were left homeless. In response, 5,300 “earthquake cottages” were built....

Laphonza Butler: At 44, California’s newly appointed senator is less than half Dianne Feinstein’s age, but can she make close to half the impact?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Laphonza Butler, the former head of California’s largest workers’ union who leads the powerful EMILY’s List and is a confidante to Vice President Kamala Harris, is being praised by supporters as a “smart and savvy” progressive activist and respectable choice by Gov. Gavin Newsom to fill the remaining term of the late U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein.Butler, 44, will become the first Black Lesbian to hold a seat in Congress. But she remains largely unknown to most Californians and is already coming under scrutiny for her limited Golden State credentials. A Mississippi native, she spent little more than a decade here before moving to Washington, D.C., two years ago to lead the non-profit that works to elect women to political office.She will be sworn in by Harris on Tuesday in Washington. In an online post Monday morning, Butler said she was honored to accept the role.“No one will ever measure up to the legacy of Sen. Dianne Feinstein,&...

‘Long overdue’: Large indoor sports complex breaks ground in the East Bay

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

Basketball and volleyball enthusiasts will likely be happy to know that Pittsburg has broken ground on what is being billed as the largest indoor recreational gymnasium in the region.The city, in partnership with Discovery Homes, marked the event with a celebration last week at John Henry Johnson Park on West Leland Road where the new 45,000-square-foot multi-court sports complex will be constructed. Dubbed “Dream Courts,” it’s the first public facility of its kind to be built in many decades in the city.“I am thrilled to see the construction of the Dream Courts begin,” said Pittsburg Mayor Shanelle Scales-Preston. “This project headlines the immense efforts of my colleagues on the City Council and I to bring new opportunities to the youth and young adults in our Pittsburg community.”The mayor said the center will be “capable of serving the recreation needs of all of Pittsburg, with the ability to host basketball leagues and tournaments, volleyball, dance, cheer, pickleball, camps, ...

California governor chooses labor leader and Democratic insider to fill Feinstein's Senate seat

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — When California Gov. Gavin Newsom needed to fill the U.S. Senate seat of his late mentor Dianne Feinstein, he could have turned to a big-city mayor, a member of Congress or a powerful legislator.Instead, he chose Laphonza Butler, a former union leader and Democratic insider who heads a national organization that raises money for women candidates who support abortion rights. She offered a familiar face who shares his vision for a progressive California. In choosing Butler, he also elevated someone who could become an important ally for a potential national campaign that many see in his future.Once she is sworn in, Butler will be the only Black woman in the Senate and the first openly LGBTQ+ California senator. That, alongside her background in the labor and women's rights movements, helps harden Newsom’s ties to important national Democratic constituencies.Speaking to reporters Monday in San Francisco, Newsom praised Butler's “deep knowledge” of the legislative pro...

Nuggets gear up for title defense, guard against complacency as NBA scenery changes with big trades

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic couldn’t take his gaze off the NBA championship trophy sitting next to his arm.The Denver Nuggets big man stared and stared at the list of teams engraved on the shiny gold prize, before something suddenly hit him.“They didn’t put our name on here,” he said Monday at media day.Actually, it was — on the very front, where Jokic couldn’t quite see.What the two-time NBA MVP and the Nuggets can see quite clearly is a path toward repeating, despite losing veteran leader/sixth-man Bruce Brown through free agency. That’s provided, of course, they can guard against one thing — complacency.“No one cares what you did last season,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone, whose team beat Miami in five games to win the NBA title. “We had success in that moment. But that moment is gone. We have a new opportunity and challenge in front of us.”The Nuggets certainly enjoyed the summer after winning the franchise’s first NBA crown. There were parades and parties before...

Warriors star Klay Thompson is open to playing for the Bahamas in the Paris Olympics

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Warriors star Klay Thompson would seriously consider playing for his father’s native country of the Bahamas in the Paris Olympics next year.“That’d be cool,” Thompson, 33, said at Monday’s media day, “because my dad never got the opportunity.”The Golden State guard won a gold medal with the U.S. team at the 2016 Rio Games and would have to go through several steps to become eligible to play for another country — such as having a passport from the Bahamas, being released by the Americans and receiving approval from the International Basketball Federation. Thompson’s father was born in Nassau.Veteran Suns guard Eric Gordon, whose mother is from the Caribbean country, joined the Bahamas national team as it tries to qualify for Paris.A five-time All-Star who has helped the Warriors to four championships, Thompson finally feels like he will be his dominant self again after missing more than 2 1/2 years after the 2019 Finals recovering from sur...

The Australian Open will start on Sunday and last 15 days. The hope is to reduce late nights.

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

The Australian Open will begin on a Sunday next year, expanding the Grand Slam tennis tournament to a 15-day event for the first time, with the intention of decreasing the likelihood of late-night finishes.Tennis Australia announced the change Monday, saying it hopes to make things better for the athletes and spectators by avoiding matches that stretch well past midnight. The change for next January’s tournament at Melbourne Park comes after this year’s Australian Open included a second-round match between Andy Murray and Thanasi Kokkinakis that concluded after 4 a.m.“It’s not beneficial for the umpires, the officials. I don’t think it’s amazing for the fans. It’s not good for the players,” Murray, a three-time major champion, said after that five-set win that lasted 5 hours, 45 minutes. “So, yeah, we talk about it all the time. It’s been spoken about for years. When you start the night matches late, and have conditions like that, these things are going to happen.”“Tennis afte...

NL champion Philadelphia Phillies look to make quick work of upstart Marlins in Wild Card Series

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:14:20 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Rob Thomson gripped a bottle of bubbly in the exhilarating moments after the Philadelphia Phillies clinched a second straight postseason berth and called Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott & crew “the most resilient team I’ve ever been around.”The second-year manager then pointed his bottle toward catcher J.T. Realmuto and asked, “How many more playoff wins … ”Realmuto cut him off and shouted “we’ve got 13 more wins left!” before he showered Thomson in alcohol.The countdowns after each clinch started last season — from the Wild Card Series through the National League Championship Series — but stalled in the World Series. The Phillies won 11 postseason games, two shy of the ultimate goal and their first World Series title since 2008.A year later, the Phillies are back and determined to finish the job, their confidence boosted by the so-close effort in a loss to Houston in the World Series and a lineup and pitching staff they believe are deeper than the ones from...