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Splash Mountain closure date at Disneyland still to be determined

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

The impending closure of Splash Mountain will take place soon, but an exact date has yet to be announced when the Critter Country attraction will begin a yearlong transformation to a new Princess Tiana theme.It appeared from Disneyland’s website early Sunday morning that the classic log flume ride would go dark in early May, but that information was not correct.After its closure, Splash Mountain will reopen at Disneyland and Walt Disney World in 2024 with a “Princess and the Frog” theme based on the 2009 Disney animated film.The Splash Mountain attraction at Walt Disney World closed in January. Disneyland’s Splash Mountain underwent a seasonal winter refurbishment in January that was unrelated to the planned “Princess and the Frog” makeover.The reimagining of the Splash Mountain rides will remove thematic elements related to “Song of the South” — the controversial 1940s animated film criticized for perpetuating racist stereotypes that has been disowned by Disney.Tiana’s Bayou Advent...

Anti-Palestinian Hate on Social Media Is Growing, Says a Facebook Partner

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

Violent and racist anti-Palestinian rhetoric grew more prevalent across social media platforms last year, according to a new report published by 7amleh, an organization that partners with Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook.Hateful anti-Palestinian remarks grew by 10 percent in 2022, compared to the prior year, according to the new report, based on an aggregated analysis of mentions of “Arabs,” “Palestinians,” and related keywords by Israeli social media users. 7amleh attributes the increase to a spate of real-world violence, including the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and Israeli military raids at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. As The Intercept previously reported, 2022 was the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since the end of the Second Intifada, with 2023 already on track to surpass that toll.“The 10 percent increase in violent speech against Arabs and Palestinians is alarming and should be taken on serious matter from t...

Cristiano Ronaldo happy again with Portugal’s national team

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

Cristiano Ronaldo is feeling at home again.It took only two games for him to make his peace with Portugal’s national team and show he is not done impressing at the international level just yet.In his return after a disappointing World Cup and a controversial move to Saudi soccer, the 38-year-old Ronaldo scored four goals in Portugal’s first two games in 2024 European Championship qualifying, showing he remains the leader that fans got used to seeing wearing the national team’s red and green uniform.Ronaldo netted twice in the 6-0 rout of Luxembourg on Sunday, three days after scoring another brace in the 4-0 win over Liechtenstein, when he became the men’s player with the most international appearances with 197.“Two games, two victories,” the Portugal captain said on his social media accounts after the win at Luxembourg. “Happy to have contributed to a very positive start by our national team. Let’s go.”The goals came against European minnows but seemed to be enough to restore Ronal...

Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approve 30% pay raise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.After hours of public comment and testimony, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted 8-2 this week to approve 30 percent salary increases for future members.The increase would see board members’ annual salaries go from 90,000 to $123,283, while the chairman’s salary would increase from the current $100,000 to $138,283, according to a newsletter from Chairman Jeffrey Mckay. In accordance with Virginia law, the pay raises would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024, when a new board takes office.Supervisor John Foust, who plans to retire after this year, introduced the motion at an earlier board meeting this month. His proposal called for board members’ salaries to increase as high as $130,000 and to a range of $140,000 to $145,000 for the chairman. The board last received a pay raise eight years ago, in 2015.The pr...

Trinity Rodman’s goal leads Spirit over Reign in home opener

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

Reigning National Women’s Soccer League MVP Sophia Smith scored in the 22nd minute and the defending champion Portland Thorns opened the season with a 4-0 victory at home over the Orlando Pride on Sunday.It was the 100th victory for the Thorns, the first NWSL team to reach that milestone. Portland, which has won three league titles, unfurled its 2022 championship banner at Providence Park before the game.Morgan Weaver scored an early goal for the Thorns before Smith’s goal off a pass from Christine Sinclair made it 2-0. Hina Sugita added a third goal for the Thorns in the 49th.Michele Vasconcelos added a final goal for the Thorns in the 76th. It was her first goal for the Thorns and first NWSL goal since she was with the Chicago Red Stars in 2019.Smith has scored in the season opener for three straight years.NJ/NY GOTHAM FC 2, ANGEL CITY 1Lynn Williams scored in the 64th minute to cap a come-from-behind 2-1 win for NJ/NY Gotham FC over Angel City FC on Sunday evening.The road victor...

Rhodes ready to take his place in WrestleMania spotlight

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

World Wrestling Entertainment’s prodigal son could become its undisputed champion on April 2.Cody Rhodes will face Roman Reigns in the main event of this year’s WrestleMania looking to write the final chapter of a story that began seven years ago when he left the company. When Rhodes departed in 2016, he was mired in playing different characters with no hopes of being a top-card wrestler. He spent the time on the independent circle, including Ring of Honor, before becoming one of the significant figures in the formation of All Elite Wrestling, which has become the biggest competitor to WWE since WCW in the late ’90s.Rhodes came back to a hero’s welcome at last year’s WrestleMania. A torn pectoral muscle last June put a slight roadblock to the comeback, but Rhodes returned in late January and won the Royal Rumble. That set up his match with Reigns, who will put his 946-day championship reign on the line April 2 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.“It’s satisfying and vindicating. Bu...

7 OK following Fort Lauderdale house fire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

A raging fire broke out in a home on East Dayton Circle and seven people who were staying at the vacation rental property managed to escape safely. The Fort Lauderdale Fire Department responded to the scene and worked tirelessly to control the flames.According to officials, the fire started inside one of the rooms and was quickly contained. Photos from the scene show the intense heat and flames pouring from a window as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze.All seven were unharmed and are currently receiving support from local authorities.The cause of the fire is currently under investigation, but does not appear suspicious, said officials.

Hot start to the week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

High pressure continues to be locked in across South Florida, while a cold front stalls over the Southeast with the active weather stays well North. Therefore, South-Southeast winds will continue here with above normal temperatures and mainly dry conditions. Temperatures in some areas could reach 90 degrees in the afternoon hours.A weakening cold front is set to work its way down the Floriday Peninsula on Wednesday and reach South Florida. This will be our best chance out of the entire weak to see a few showers and maybe even a thunderstorm.Once it arrives, it will stall to the South as high pressure builds across the mid-Atlantic states to increase winds out of the Northeast and bring some relief from the heat with highs going into the low 80’s starting Thursday. There will also be lower humidity.Have a wonderful day South Florida and make it a safe one! Vivian GonzalezMeteorologist, AMS Certified WSVN Channel 7

Police searching for driver after hit-and-run leaves 1 dead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

Fort Lauderdale Police are currently on the hunt for a driver who hit a man and left him to die in the middle of the road. The victim’s body was found near 24th Street and West Broward Boulevard, Sunday morning.Video footage of the area showed the victim lying on the ground and covered by a tarp while police investigated the scene. According to the police, they are working to track down the person responsible for this tragic hit-and-run incident. The victim has not yet been identified, and the motive behind the incident remains unknown.The police have urged anyone with information to come forward and help with the investigation. Witnesses or anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the area on Sunday morning is being asked to contact the Fort Lauderdale Police Department at (954) 828-5700.

‘City killer’ asteroid safely passes through Earth and moon

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:02 GMT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An asteroid big enough to wipe out a city harmlessly passed between Earth and the moon’s orbit this weekend, missing both celestial bodies.Saturday’s close encounter offered astronomers the chance to study a space rock from just over 100,000 miles (168,000 kilometers) away. That’s less than half the distance from here to the moon, making it visible through binoculars and small telescopes.While asteroid flybys are common, NASA said it’s rare for one so big to come so close — about once a decade. Scientists estimate its size somewhere between 130 feet and 300 feet (40 meters and 90 meters).Discovered a month ago, the asteroid known as 2023 DZ2 passed within 320,000 miles (515,000 kilometers) of the moon on Saturday and, several hours later, buzzed the Indian Ocean at about 17,500 mph (28,000 kph).“There was no chance of this ‘city killer’ striking Earth, but its close approach offers a great opportunity for observations,” the European Space Agency’s p...