After middle-finger gesture, leaders want Bridgeport official removed

FILE PHOTO: City leaders are calling for Maria Pereira, who represents Bridgeport’s 138th district in the City Council, to resign after making “offensive” comments in an email and giving the middle finger to a member of the public during a meeting last week. Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media FILE PHOTO: Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim and City Council … Read more

Congressional leaders take step to avert shutdown

WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders have reached an agreement on overall spending levels for the current fiscal year that could help avoid a partial government shutdown later this month. The agreement largely hews to spending caps for defense and domestic programs that Congress set as part of a bill to suspend the debt limit until 2025. … Read more

DOT reveals reason for vast majority of flight delays

A flight approaches the airport in San Diego, Calif. K.C. Alfred/Getty Images In this week’s airline news, the Transportation Department said the flight cancellation rate in 2023 dropped by almost 50% from the previous year, and the rate over the year-end holidays was even lower; DOT also said the vast majority of flight delays were caused … Read more

Opinion | To attract tourists again, Hong Kong must look to Harbin, China’s ice capital, for lessons. But could we ever offer that city’s warmth?

In response to the post-Covid era and the sluggish global economy, the government launched various campaigns to promote the city’s diverse attractions, cultural heritage, nature, arts scene and culinary landscape. Hong Kong’s Temple Street night market bustles with people on December 18, 2023. Photo: Elson LI Additionally, shopping and entertainment were emphasised to capitalise on … Read more

Spain Health Officials Reinstate Masks Rules in Some Areas

Spanish health officials in at least five regions of the country are reintroducing masks in health care facilities and recommending their use elsewhere as cases of flu and COVID-19 are seeing a post-holiday spike. Health officials in the Valencia region — an area that includes popular tourist destinations — implemented mandatory masks rules in all … Read more

Former Giant deletes X account after seemingly being outed as horndog

Aubrey Huff, seen here for the San Francisco Giants on Sept. 23, 2012, against the San Diego Padres, recently deleted his account on X, formerly known as Twitter. Jason O. Watson/Getty Images It seems like former San Francisco Giants star turned right-wing political troll Aubrey Huff is finally off X, formerly known as Twitter. Huff … Read more

In CT, high school instruction time varies by as much as an hour

The average high school teacher in Danbury spends roughly 182 minutes on instructional time, while a typical teacher in Stamford could be teaching in a classroom for 264 minutes daily by next year. Data show the amount of time teachers in high schools across the state spend providing instruction varies greatly, due to different schedule structures, … Read more

Mastermind Toys stopped accepting gift cards on Dec. 24 — when most cards were still wrapped

Riverview father Rudy Walters is speaking out after Mastermind Toys stopped accepting gift cards effective Christmas Day — with signs posted on their storefronts only days before. Walters said the move raises questions about the value of gift cards and about consumer protection when a company such as Mastermind Toys heads toward bankruptcy. “I would just like to see some more … Read more