Category: News
Juez en EEUU ordena restaurar miles de millones en fondos cancelados para la mitigación de desastres
Por GABRIELA AOUN ANGUEIRA
Un juez federal en Massachusetts ordenó el jueves a la administración Trump restablecer miles de millones de dólares en fondos de la Agencia Federal de Gestión de Emergencias (FEMA) para la mitigación de desastres que fueron cancelados hace unos meses, fallando a favor de 22 estados y el Distrito de Columbia que demandaron.
La administración del presidente Donald Trump anunció en abril el fin del programa de Infraestructura y Comunidades Resilientes (BRIC, por sus siglas en inglés), que ayudaba a las comunidades con proyectos para fortalecer la infraestructura y mejorar la resiliencia frente a las crecientes amenazas del cambio climático.
La administración calificó el programa de “despilfarrador e ineficaz” y dijo que retendría 3.600 millones de dólares en fondos otorgados pero aún no pagados y que no otorgaría 882 millones en subvenciones para el siguiente año fiscal.
La interrupción del programa trastocó proyectos en cientos de comunidades en estados liderados tanto por republicanos como por demócratas, frustrando planes para mejorar el drenaje pluvial, reforzar líneas eléctricas e incluso ayudar a reubicar hogares que viven en áreas más vulnerables a desastres.
Un portavoz del Departamento de Seguridad Nacional dijo el jueves a The Associated Press que el departamento “no ha terminado con el BRIC”, pero no dio más detalles sobre el estado del programa.
“La administración Biden abandonó la verdadera mitigación y usó al BRIC como un fondo de maniobra del nuevo acuerdo verde”, dijo el portavoz, refiriéndose a un plan demócrata para combatir el cambio climático. “Es lamentable que un juez activista no entendiera eso o no le importara”.
La orden llega en un momento de profunda incertidumbre sobre el futuro de la FEMA y el mismo día en que una esperada reunión de su Consejo de Revisión para presentar un informe recomendando reformas a la agencia fue cancelada abruptamente por la Casa Blanca porque no había sido completamente informada sobre la última versión del informe, según un funcionario de la Casa Blanca que no estaba autorizado para discutir el asunto públicamente y habló bajo condición de anonimato.
El Congreso financió al BRIC durante la primera administración Trump a través de la Ley de Reforma de Recuperación de Desastres de 2018, y FEMA lanzó el programa en 2020. La Ley de Inversión en Infraestructura y Empleos de 2021 puso a disposición 1.000 millones de dólares adicionales para el BRIC durante cinco años, aunque solo se habían entregado alrededor de 133 millones a las comunidades para abril, según FEMA.
El programa fue criticado por algunos por ser difícil de acceder para comunidades rurales y menos prósperas debido a un proceso de solicitud complicado y requisitos de cofinanciamiento. Pero incluso legisladores republicanos como el senador Bill Cassidy de Luisiana se opusieron a las cancelaciones y pidieron la reinstauración del BRIC.
“Protege a las familias y ahorra dinero de los contribuyentes a largo plazo”, dijo Cassidy en el Senado una semana después de la cancelación de los fondos. “Eso es eficiente en mi libro”.
El juez Richard G. Stearns determinó que las acciones de FEMA eran ilegales ya que el Congreso había asignado el dinero específicamente para las subvenciones y que había un “interés público inherente en asegurar que el gobierno siga la ley”.
“El programa BRIC está diseñado para proteger contra desastres naturales y salvar vidas”, escribió Stearns en la orden judicial.
La administración Trump ha recortado dólares para la preparación ante desastres en múltiples programas de FEMA este año como parte de su campaña para transferir más responsabilidad por desastres a los estados.
Desde febrero, Trump no ha aprobado ninguna solicitud de fondos para mitigación de riesgos, un complemento típico que ayuda a los estados, tribus y territorios a completar proyectos de resiliencia después de desastres mayores.
Las subvenciones para la preparación ante emergencias de las que dependen los estados y gobiernos locales para dotar de personal a las agencias de gestión de emergencias y comprar equipos están actualmente congeladas después de que 12 estados demandaron a la administración Trump por estipulaciones de subvenciones sin precedentes relacionadas con la agenda migratoria de la administración.
Múltiples estudios han demostrado que las inversiones preventivas para desastres pueden generar ahorros significativos. Un estudio de 2024 financiado por la Cámara de Comercio de Estados Unidos encontró que cada dólar invertido en preparación para desastres ahorró 13 en impacto económico, daños y costos de limpieza.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Jordan Peterson Out Of Hospital But Still “Very Unwell”, Daughter Says
Jordan Peterson Out Of Hospital But Still “Very Unwell”, Daughter Says
Authored by Jennifer Cowan via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
Canadian psychologist and public speaker Jordan Peterson is continuing to fight an uphill battle with his health but has returned home after spending several months in the hospital, his daughter says.
Mikhaila Peterson shared an update on social media this week—her first since October—to announce her father’s return home after spending time in an intensive care unit this fall, where he was treated for pneumonia and sepsis. Those conditions appeared after mold exposure this summer led to a “severe” flare-up of a chronic illness he has been battling since 2017, she said.
Specialists are continuing to work on determining the underlying cause of his illness and are considering a complex array of possibilities from neurological, to autoimmune, to a mixture of both.
Mikhaila said no answers have emerged thus far and he remains “very unwell.”
“I’m hopeful he will recover with time,” she said in a Dec. 9 video post. “When I posted the last video, I didn’t know if he would recover at all. It was really scary and I’m hopeful now, but it’s still early on.”
Her father’s prognosis remains uncertain, but Mikhaila said she is hopeful he is on the road to recovery.
“Things are really bad, but they’re not as bad as they were a month ago or two months ago,” she said.
Mikhaila first announced her father’s health crisis in an August social media post, saying he had been forced to postpone his podcasts and reschedule his European tour due to a “severe” onset of symptoms she said is linked to chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS).
“Jordan Peterson is taking some time off of everything,” she wrote in an Aug. 13 X post, saying he has a “genetic predisposition” that results in the immune system’s inability to detect and detoxify mould or bacteria in indoor air.
She noted that her father has been battling CIRS since 2017, but the family didn’t know what the problem was at the time. CIRS is a long-term condition triggered by exposure to biotoxins in water-damaged buildings that can result in a variety of debilitating symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and changes in appetite, according to the National Library of Medicine.
She said his struggles with the condition had intensified over the past year but a recent large mould exposure while helping to clean out her grandfathers’ basement had pushed his symptoms over the edge.
He was taken to the hospital by ambulance later that same month and Mikhaila said in an October social media post that her father had spent nearly a month in the ICU before being moved to “a less urgent floor.”
The family was unable to communicate with Peterson throughout the majority of September, his daughter said in a video accompanying the post. He was diagnosed with critical illness polyneuropathy (CIP) toward the end of his bout with pneumonia. CIP is nerve damage causing severe, symmetrical weakness in critically ill patients, a common complication from sepsis.
Peterson’s situation is further complicated by his inability to take most medications without experiencing “severe paradoxical reactions,” thereby restricting his treatment options, his daughter said.
Stressful Time
Mikhaila said her father’s increased health issues came during a stressful period for her family after she struggled with a difficult pregnancy and then her infant daughter fell ill in June. The six-week-old Audrey suffered a nearly fatal episode of heart failure in June and was then hospitalized again just hours after her father was taken to the hospital in August.
The married mom of three said Audrey is now seven months old and doing “really well” after suffering what now appears to be a “one off freak incident that hasn’t repeated.”
Between her youngest daughter’s health scares and her dad’s condition the 33-year-old has been mostly offline for several months, saying she was feeling “too stressed out” to keep up with The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast.
“I wish things would just go back to normal, but they’re not there yet,” she said in her most recent video update. “Thank you so much for your prayers. We need them. I’ll let you guys know as soon as I can if anything changes, hopefully he’s on the road to recovery.”
Peterson, professor emeritus at the University of Toronto in psychology, rose to fame through his YouTube lectures, his successful self-help book, “12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos,” and his criticism of the federal government’s Bill C-16, which added the protection of gender identity and expression to the Human Rights Code and Criminal Code. The bill received royal assent in June 2017.
The author announced last December his relocation to the United States due to his regulatory battles with the College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario (CPBAO), also citing the political climate in Canada. He and his wife settled in Arizona, where his daughter resides with her family.
The CPBAO, the governing body for psychologists in Ontario, ordered him in 2022 to undergo social media training for comments he made online about a plus-sized model, transgender actor Elliot Page, and a number of politicians.
The well-known author refuted the college’s assertions, saying his comments were not expressed in his professional capacity as a clinical psychologist.
Peterson legally challenged the order but ultimately failed in his attempt after the Supreme Court of Canada chose not to hear his case last summer and dismissed it “with costs.” He had promised in a column earlier that year not only to dive into the social media training prescribed by the college if he lost the case, but to “publicize every single bit of it.”
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/11/2025 – 21:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/jordan-peterson-out-hospital-still-very-unwell-daughter-says
US Solar Installations Soar As Developers Rush To Secure Tax Credits
US Solar Installations Soar As Developers Rush To Secure Tax Credits
The U.S. solar market saw a significant jump in capacity installations in the third quarter as developers ramp up activity and construction to qualify for the last investment tax credits that are being phased out by the Trump Administration.
As OilPrice reported, the industry added 11.7 gigawatts direct current (GWdc) of solar power capacity in the third quarter of 2025, up by 20% from a year earlier and a massive 49% surge compared to the second quarter. That was the third-largest quarter for deployment in the industry’s history, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie said in the U.S. Solar Market Insight Q4 2025 report.
After the tumult caused by the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) in the summer, the robust third quarter largely reflects utility-scale solar projects that were mostly complete in the second quarter, the report noted.
Under the Trump Administration’s OBBBA, wind and solar projects must begin construction no later than July 4, 2026, to qualify for Investment Tax Credit (ITC) or Production Tax Credit (PTC). Projects that miss this deadline must be fully placed in service by December 31, 2027, to remain eligible for tax credits.
While utility-scale solar installations hit a third-quarter record, the federal permitting freeze presents uncertainty and risk to the industry going forward, SEIA and WoodMac said.
Still, one thing seems certain: the earlier a project could come online or meet the legal requirements for “starting construction,” the better. As a result, Wood Mackenzie predicted there would be a rush of activity to execute on well-positioned projects.
Despite the assault on renewable energy, solar and storage accounted for 85% of all new power added to the grid in the first nine months of the Trump Administration, SEIA said.
A total of 73% of all solar capacity installed this year has been built in states won by President Trump, including 8 of the top 10 states for new installations: Texas, Indiana, Florida, Arizona, Ohio, Utah, Kentucky, and Arkansas.
Despite the remarkable growth so far, “unless this administration reverses course, the future of clean, affordable, and reliable solar and storage will be frozen by uncertainty and Americans will continue to see their energy bills go up,” SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper said.
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/11/2025 – 21:20
https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/us-solar-installations-soar-developers-rush-secure-tax-credits
Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers bring a youth movement to USA Basketball camp
DURHAM, N.C. — There’s a youth movement at USA Basketball camp this weekend with young WNBA players Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers making their debuts with the national team.
They’ve been competing against each other in college and the WNBA over the last few years, and Bueckers was happy to have them as teammates again. Many of the young players had competed together for the U.S. on youth teams. They’ll get their first taste of the senior national team in a camp at Duke this weekend.
“It’s great competing with them for a change instead of against them and I think we really bring out the best of each other,” Bueckers said. “That’s what USA Basketball does. Just so many amazing athletes and women coming together for one common goal. That’s always brought out the best of each other. It’s really fun to be able to share the court and be on the same side for a change.”
Bueckers gave the group the nickname “Young and Turnt” — a phrase used by youth players in the past to describe their high energy and excitement playing with USA Basketball.
The trio, along with other senior national newcomers Cameron Brink, Aliyah Boston and JuJu Watkins, are the future of USA Basketball with veterans Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird retired and other longtime fixtures in the lineup nearing the end of their careers. The U.S. has won eight straight Olympic gold medals and four consecutive world championships. Olympic veterans Kahleah Copper, Jackie Young and Kelsey Plum will also be at the three-day camp.
“Obviously there’s some vets and there’s the older class who have already came in and won gold medals, and they have that experience,” Bueckers said. “So as a younger group, you want to ask them questions, soak it up, be a sponge. Like, get their experience and then grow in our experience as well.”
The average age of the 17 players at the camp is just over 25. Bueckers said having so many young players who have been together brings a comfort level.
“There’s a familiarity of competing with and against each other,” she said. “We kind of know each other and it’s more comfortable that way, too. We’re all coming in and we’re having the same expectations of just wanting to go in there and compete and have fun and bring our vibes in and just be us.”
Bird, who is now the managing director for USA Basketball, said this camp will hopefully give the new players a look at international basketball at its highest level.
“Really have it be a tone setter,” said Bird, who helped the U.S. win five Olympic gold medals as a player. “What is it to wear USA on your chest? What is it to be on this team? Whether it’s a World Cup qualifier we’ll get to in March or hopefully the gold-medal game of a big competition, you have to set the tone on Day 1.”
Though many invites went out for the camp, Bird said past Olympians such as A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Napheesa Collier had other commitments.
“There’s a lot of moving parts, that’s always how it is for USA Basketball,” Bird said. “For the young players, it’s a great opportunity to get their first feel and first taste.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/11/usa-basketball-angel-reese-caitlin-clark/
Israel Used Palantir Technology In Its 2024 Lebanon Pager Attack
Israel Used Palantir Technology In Its 2024 Lebanon Pager Attack
Palantir software was used by Israel in its 2024 pager attacks in Lebanon, according to a new book by Alex Karp, co-founder of the Palantir tech company. On September 17, thousands of pagers belonging to Hezbollah members, including civilians not involved in any armed activity, were detonated across Lebanon.
Many showed “error” messages and vibrated loudly prior to exploding, luring Hezbollah members or, in some cases, their family members to stand close by at the point of detonation. The next day more communication devices exploded, including at the public funerals of Hezbollah members and civilians who had been killed the previous day.
While many Israeli figures celebrated, praised and even joked about the attacks, United Nations experts called them a “terrifying” violation of international law. In total, 42 people were killed and thousands wounded, many left with life-altering injuries to the eyes, face and hands.
Karp’s new biography reveals that Israel deepened its use of the company’s technology after it launched the war on Gaza in October 2023, deploying it in numerous operations.
“The company’s technology was deployed by the Israelis during military operations in Lebanon in 2024 that decimated Hezbollah’s top leadership,” wrote Michael Steinberger, author of The Philosopher in the Valley: Alex Karp, Palantir, and the Rise of the Surveillance State.
“It was also used in Operation Grim Beeper, in which hundreds of Hezbollah fighters were injured and maimed when their pagers and walkie-talkies exploded (the Israelis had booby trapped the devices).”
He said that the demand for Palantir’s assistance by Israel “was so great that the company dispatched a team of engineers from London to help get Israeli users online“.
The involvement of a range of tech companies in Israel’s attacks on its neighbors in recent years, as well as for attacking and surveilling Palestinians, has sparked anger from rights campaigners and UN officials.
In a report produced by UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese in July, several tech companies were accused of profiting from crimes including illegal occupation, apartheid and genocide in occupied Palestine. The report referenced AI systems that were developed by the Israeli military to process and generate targets during the war on Gaza.
“There are reasonable grounds to believe Palantir has provided automatic predictive policing technology, core defense infrastructure for rapid and scaled-up construction and deployment of military software, and its Artificial Intelligence Platform, which allows real-time battlefield data integration for automated decision making,” the report said.
In the report, Albanese called on UN member states to suspend all trade agreements and investor relations on any inviduals or entities that endangered Palestinians.
She added that the International Criminal Court and national judiciaries should pursue investigations and prosecutions of corporate executives and entities for “their part in the commission of international crimes and laundering of the proceeds from those crimes.” Middle East Eye has asked Palantir for comment.
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/11/2025 – 20:55
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/israel-used-palantir-technology-its-2024-lebanon-pager-attack
Stephen Curry ansioso por volver tras lesión y jugar con Warriors el viernes contra Minnesota
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Apenas en los últimos días Stephen Curry recuperó completamente el rango de movimiento en su muslo izquierdo lesionado, lo que le permitió reanudar todas las actividades en la cancha de práctica con los Warriors de Golden State.
Ahora, Curry espera estar listo para jugar a tope nuevamente.
El entrenador Steve Kerr confió el jueves en que el veterano de 37 años, dos veces elegido el Jugador Más Valioso, regrese para el encuentro del viernes contra Minnesota, después de una ausencia de cinco partidos debido a una contusión en el cuádriceps izquierdo y una distensión muscular.
Los Warriors tuvieron un récord de 3-2 sin Curry, y ahora se espera que juegue junto a su hermano menor Seth Curry por primera vez.
“Me siento genial. Tuve una buena semana de rehabilitación y los muchachos hicieron su trabajo en el viaje, así que fue genial ver la energía de regreso”, afirmó Stephen Curry después de la práctica del jueves. “Estoy feliz de haber practicado los últimos días para ver cómo me siento. Después de estas dos últimas sesiones, soy bastante optimista”.
Se quedó en casa durante el reciente viaje para rehabilitarse y participó en su primera práctica con el equipo el miércoles en el Chase Center. Curry dijo que pasaría de cuatro a seis horas en el Chase Center solo con el personal médico y de entrenamiento trabajando para recuperarse.
“Muchos días largos. Uno siempre habla de la rehabilitación, es monótona, especialmente cuando el equipo está fuera”, comentó. “Tienes que tener algunas listas de reproducción realmente buenas”.
Curry se lesionó el 26 de noviembre durante la derrota de Golden State por 104-100 ante los Rockets de Houston. Tuvo que tolerar el dolor en la parte inferior de su cuádriceps para poder mover la pierna como necesita, y también tuvo que recuperar algo de la fuerza perdida no sólo en el músculo distendido, sino en las áreas circundantes.
“Eso es en lo que he estado trabajando la última semana y, a medida que recuperé la movilidad, pude volver a la cancha bastante rápido y volver a moverme con normalidad”, explicó.
Curry, en su 17ª temporada en la NBA, cayó aparatosamente junto con Amen Thompson de Houston bajo la canasta con 3:24 restantes y el partido empatado a 91. Thompson había atacado el aro, en una jugada que inicialmente fue señalada como falta ofensiva.
Houston desafió y la decisión se cambió a un bloqueo de Curry, quien hizo una mueca de dolor en el suelo. Cojeó hacia el vestuario con 35 segundos restantes.
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Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
‘No space for us’: Parents claim overcrowding at Haugan Elementary but CPS disagrees and denies expansion
Every morning, Mirella Gomez walks her three children to school at Helen A. Haugan Elementary in Albany Park. One by one, she kisses them on the forehead and whispers a gentle reminder in Spanish to take care of themselves before sending them off for the day.
Since August, her daughter has been telling her stories about crowded spaces in the school, but it wasn’t until Monday that she saw the reality for herself.
Gomez said she visited the school’s former library to grab documents she needed.
Suddenly, her daughter’s words struck her as she scanned the room. Every inch of the space was claimed by people and things, Gomez said.
Desks, tables and play areas for children were packed tightly near the printing area. Boxes and bins of nameless items on shelves swallowed her in, she said.
What was once a library had been converted into a very tight multipurpose room including a makeshift office space for school counselors, teachers and the school’s dean. Students and parents also meet there for student counseling sessions or parent conferences, when necessary.
Gomez found the crowding she observed so concerning that she wrote it down in her personal journal so she’d never forget, she said. “There’s no space for us. . . There’s no space for them to play,” Gomez wrote in Spanish in her notebook.
And she does not stand alone.
Other Haugan parents and community members have echoed her concerns, telling the Tribune that students and staff are occupying spaces like former storage closets, hallways and at tables underneath stairways to accommodate the growing student population, which has increased nearly 24% over three school years to 1073, according to the most recent CPS data.
“Every kid here is being impacted by that (overcrowding),” Haugan parent Cliff Tarrance said. “We’re happy with the school but the overall quality of education is definitely impacted by that.”
Even the school’s principal, Heather Smith, does not have a private office, sharing space with school clinicians, community members told the Tribune. Smith declined the Tribune’s requests for comment.
Yet, despite these pleas from the school community, on Dec. 1, Chicago Public Schools denied Haugan’s request to move roughly 250 students in its seventh and eighth-grade classes to nearby North River Elementary, a lottery-based school roughly a six-minute walk away, for the 2026-2027 school year.
In its decision, the district weighed multiple factors, including “a space analysis of both schools, enrollment patterns, safety considerations, cost implications, impact on the school communities, and other relevant factors,” CPS Acting Chief Portfolio Officer Conrad Timbers-Ausar wrote in a letter published on Haugan’s website.
The district’s space analysis concluded Haugan can hold 1,230 students.
But the school community insists this is not the full picture.
In 2012, researcher Jeanne Marie Olson found a problem with the formula Chicago Public Schools used to measure school space. She showed that CPS’s method didn’t match the real maximum class size among other factors.
Using her calculations, Haugan’s school community rechecked their building against current CPS standards and determined it should only hold 1,159 students.
As of Thursday, they are 86 students shy of that limit, according to CPS data.
“Neighborhood schools have to take everybody that shows up,” Olson said. “So if you end up with 41 kids in kindergarten and you’re trying to make kindergarten manageable. . . Now you’ve got a problem.”
In a statement to the Tribune, CPS wrote “While Haugan has space constraints, it is not currently overcrowded,” Decisions to convert spaces to meet their needs are made by the schools, not the district, according to the statement.
Alejandra Carrillo says goodbye to her daughter, Elen Sanchez, at Haugan Elementary School in Albany Park on Dec. 9, 2025, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
Co-locating at North River Elementary would provide Haugan with additional classrooms for holistic and special education services, parents said. When Smith and the school community requested an expansion in September, they agreed that seventh- and eighth-grade classrooms would be the easiest to co-locate, causing minimal disruption to the school’s foundation. The eight classrooms designated for seventh- and eighth-grade students would be redistributed at Haugan for other educational uses.
Although their request was denied, the Haugan community emphasized that the fight to secure more space for students is far from over.
It’s merely the beginning, they said.
A decades-long battle for space
For longtime community members, the denial feels familiar.
Local School Council (LSC) member Marni Willenson said the situation mirrors what happened in the community more than two decades ago.
That’s when Willenson served on a neighborhood committee, which she said was formed to give residents a voice in charter school expansions across Chicago. At that time, a new school building was constructed just blocks away from Haugan.
But when proposals emerged to populate the building – one from Haugan and another from charter operator Aspira Inc – Willenson said the community’s preference for Haugan was overruled by CPS.
At one time serving 800 students, Aspira Haugan Middle School ran the school designed to provide a high-tech education to middle schoolers from 2005 until it shuttered in June, citing low enrollment and a steep deficit. In 2022, North River Elementary opened in the building where 335 students are currently enrolled in grades K-8.
“We’re in such a parallel situation,” Willenson said. “Despite all the organization of the community, overwhelming community support and a critical need for using that space, we’ve been denied.”
Haugan officials predict the student population could swell by an additional 50 to 150 students next year.
Tiffany Harvey, a parent and local school council co-chair at Haugan Elementary School, stands outside of the Albany Park school on Dec. 9, 2025, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
LSC Chair Tiffany Harvey expressed concern about the school’s ability to accommodate every student should enrollment change significantly next year.
“I know we are going to grow, “ Harvey said. “I’m very upset that parents in my community really don’t have the right to send their child to the neighborhood school unless they want to deal with larger class sizes.”
And while the Chicago Teachers Union signed a new contract in April for kindergarten classes to be capped at 25 students, Kristen Heilemann, who teaches kindergarten at Haugan, said she has nearly 30 students.
“It’s been a very hard challenge,” Heilemann said.
Special education teacher Anne Nolan, who co-teaches with Heilemann, sometimes takes her students who need individualized instruction into the hallway when the room gets too noisy. But sometimes the hallway is not a solution, she said, as other teachers are working with students there too.
“We’re fighting for space in the hallway—and the hallway—it’s a racket,” Nolan said.
Nolan emphasized that she wasn’t claiming Haugan is noisier than other schools, but said the crowded conditions make it especially difficult for young learners to focus.
Esther Pomranky, whose child is in pre-kindergarten at Haugan said she has a difficult decision to make next year.
“I’m between a rock and a hard place,” Pomranky said. “And I know a lot of neighbors are in the same boat.”And for many parents, the concern goes beyond crowded classrooms, converted school spaces and activities like “art on a cart” that sprouted due to a lack of space.
For them, it’s about equity and the right to have their voices heard.
District denies bias, parents press for fairness
Andrea Macias argues that the district’s denial of colocation is tied to racial dynamics. She believes Haugan’s crowding issue is being overlooked because of the community’s demographics. The school is located in a majority Hispanic and Latino community in the heart of Albany Park, with 82% of students reflecting the same demographic makeup.
More than 75% of Haugan’s students are also English learners, far above the district’s 28% according to the Illinois Report Card.
Gomez, who is president of Haugan’s Bilingual Advisory Committee, shared similar sentiments. “It’s enough injustice for our community,” Gomez said in Spanish.
An overcrowded school should concern everyone, according to Macias.“Whether your kid is affected or not, they live in our community,” Macias said. “It will always affect all of us.”
Zach Cavett hugs his daughter, Ezra, before she heads off to school at Haugan Elementary School in Albany Park on Dec. 9, 2025, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
“You can see the need,” Zach Cavett said, whose daughter attends the school. “Investing in this community and developing it is going to be amazing for all of these kids who live here.”
In their statement to the Tribune, CPS denied allegations that race played a role in its decision.
“CPS strongly rejects any suggestion that overcrowding or facility challenges are acceptable due to a school’s demographic makeup. Promoting equity, particularly for Black and Brown students and multilingual learners, is a top priority for CPS as outlined in Together We Rise, the District’s strategic plan,” according to an emailed statement.
As for the vacant space at North River Elementary, the district said OPM will also “evaluate the enrollment needs of the entire Albany Park community to determine the most effective way to utilize the space available at North River.”
But Gomez said the time to find a solution is now.
“We need the space,” Gomez said in Spanish. “It is absolutely urgent that we get it.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/11/cps-haugan-elementary-overcrowding/
Photos: All aboard the CTA Holiday Train!
Santa, lower left, waves aboard an open-air car on the CTA Holiday Train traveling south toward the Merchandise Mart on Dec. 3, 2025. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
A CTA elf greets passengers on the CTA Holiday Train, Dec. 3, 2025, on the Orange Line “L.” (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Santa Claus rides the CTA Holiday Train on the outbound Blue Line past the Damen station, Dec. 11, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
The CTA Holiday Train runs over the Chicago River on the Wells Street bridge in Chicago, Dec. 3, 2025. (Dominic Di Palermo/Chicago Tribune)
The CTA Holiday Train heads rolls south toward the Merchandise Mart, Dec. 3, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
A CTA elf stands with the Holiday Train, Dec. 3, 2025, on the Orange Line “L.” (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Santa prepares to depart Midway International Airport on his open-air CTA Holiday Train car on Dec. 3, 2025, on the Orange Line “L.” (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Santa rides the CTA Holiday Train on the outbound Blue Line past the Damen station, Dec. 11, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Gov. JB Pritzker hands out candy canes to passengers while riding the CTA Holiday Train, Dec. 3, 2025, on the Orange Line “L.” (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
The CTA Holiday Train heads north on Brown Line tracks past the Merchandise Mart, Dec. 3, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/11/photos-all-aboard-the-cta-holiday-train/
Top Democrat: Murder Of DC National Guard Just An ‘Unfortunate Accident’
Top Democrat: Murder Of DC National Guard Just An ‘Unfortunate Accident’
During a heated House Committee on Homeland Security hearing on Thursday, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) sparked outrage by dismissing the Thanksgiving-eve shooting of two National Guardsmen in Washington, D.C., as an “unfortunate accident.” The casual characterization of what DHS Secretary Kristi Noem quickly corrected as a terrorist attack revealed Thompson’s apparent inability—or refusal—to acknowledge the gravity of the attack that left 20-year-old U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom dead, and 24-year-old U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe critically wounded.
The exchange began when Thompson referenced what he called “the unfortunate accident that occurred with the National Guardsman being killed.”
Secretary Noem immediately pushed back, asking pointedly, “You think that was an unfortunate accident?”
When Thompson tried to deflect, Noem shot back: “It was a terrorist attack. He shot our National Guardsman in the head.”
Officials in Washington confirmed that the shooting of two National Guardsmen near the White House was a targeted attack. The gunman, Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who was admitted to the U.S. as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, reportedly walked straight up to the troops on patrol and opened fire.
Thompson not only minimized the shooting but turned it into a partisan attack, pivoting to blame the Trump administration for approving the attacker’s asylum application. He doubled down on his dismissive language.
“It was an unfortunate situation, but you blamed it solely on Joe Biden. I want you to know, who approved the asylum, uh, application, uh, for this same person?”
“Mr. Thompson, this individual that came into the country—“
“No, no, no,” Thompson interrupted. “No, I want to know who approved it.”
“Congressman Thompson, I want you to understand—“
“No, no, no, no!” Thompson interrupted.
The back-and-forth devolved into a combative exchange as Thompson repeatedly interrupted Noem’s attempts to explain how the vetting process worked. Thompson interjected multiple times, attempting to prevent the Secretary from detailing how the attacker entered the United States under Operation Allies Welcome during the chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal.
Noem fought to get her answer on the record despite Thompson’s constant interruptions. “This individual came into the country under an evacuation of Afghanistan, under Operation Allies Welcome, was thoroughly vetted by the Biden administration at that point and that time, allowed into our country, and that was never followed up,” she explained. She emphasized that the Biden administration failed to conduct required annual check-ins with asylum seekers as mandated by law.
Thompson then threatened Noem with perjury charges, insisting that the Trump administration’s DHS had approved the asylum application. “I don’t want to charge, file perjury charges against you, but I’m of the opinion that the Trump administration, DHS, your DHS, approved the asylum application,” he said.
Noem held her ground, explaining that “the asylum application moved forward under all of the information and vetting processes that were put in place under the Biden administration, which is when vetting happened.”
🚨VILE: Dem Rep. Bennie Thompson just referred to the terrorist attack against two National Guardsmen in DC as an “unfortunate accident.”
Noem: “You think that was an ‘unfortunate accident’!? He shot our National Guardsmen in the head.” pic.twitter.com/d8Bpt2xN4J
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) December 11, 2025
Thompson’s primary concern appeared to be deflecting blame from the Biden administration onto the Trump administration.
Initially, it was believed that Rahmanullah Lakanwal was radicalized after entering the U.S. under the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome. However, last week, a new theory emerged suggesting that Taliban blackmail may have coerced Lakanwal into the attack.
Federal investigators are exploring whether the Taliban threatened to harm his family in Afghanistan if he refused to carry out the shooting, raising questions about threats that standard vetting cannot detect. Lakanwal has no criminal record or history of extremism. He worked with U.S. forces in Afghanistan as a GPS-tracking specialist for the Afghan Scorpion Forces. He assisted the CIA during the 2021 evacuation from Kabul, boarding one of the last flights out. His family, along with roughly 700 former Scorpion Forces members, remain under Taliban control, making them vulnerable to retaliation. Intelligence indicates the Taliban has a history of tracking and killing Afghans who aided the West, including brutal attacks on the families of collaborators.
More than 5,000 Afghans admitted under Biden have already been flagged as security risks. The potential for coercion highlights a vulnerability no standard screening process can fully address.
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/11/2025 – 20:30
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/top-democrat-murder-dc-national-guard-just-unfortunate-accident
Bears are chill about frigid forecast for Sunday’s game: ‘It’s Chicago, man. It’s cold here every day.’
Several Chicago Bears players and coaches have either warmed to the idea that they’ll host the Cleveland Browns in bitterly cold conditions Sunday at Soldier Field — or they push it out of their minds entirely.
“There’s nothing really to talk about,” defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator Al Harris said. “Both teams are going to be out there. Whatever. If it’s 100 degrees or it’s negative 100, both teams are out there.”
The National Weather Service on Thursday forecast a high near 13 degrees and a low of around 5 for central Cook County on Sunday. The report for the area adds that “widespread subzero air temps should push wind chills into the 15- to 25-below-zero range,” but those wind chills should “gradually ease.”
Brrrrr down: A look at the coldest Chicago Bears games at Soldier Field
The players come from different backgrounds, naturally, so they’ve had a wide range of experiences — and feelings — about cold-weather games.
Grady Jarrett, defensive tackle: The veteran defensive tackle played in Mercedes-Benz Stadium (formerly the Georgia Dome) for 10 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before joining the Bears last offseason. So when asked if he remembered his coldest game, he piped up, “Yeah, I do.”
“Had to be probably 2022 in Baltimore,” he said. The game-time temperature at M&T Bank Stadium was 17 degrees with a wind chill of 2, according to NFL records.
“I don’t know what happened that week, but every game was super, super cold that week,” Jarrett said. “And we just happened to be in Baltimore. It was clear as day, but I mean, that thing was so cold.”
Jarrett allowed himself to wear a full sleeve instead of a half-sleeve to brace for the cold, and “that thing was still coming through.”
But he said there wasn’t anything he or the team could’ve done to better prepare for the elements.
“What, we’re going to a freezer and practice?” he said.
Ravens fans dress warmly and festively for game against the Falcons on Dec. 24, 2022, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. (Kenneth K. Lam/Baltimore Sun)
Jarrett said he’s taking a similar mindset with Sunday’s game.
“It’s Chicago, man. It’s cold here every day,” he said.
He dresses lighter in practice to try to acclimate to December games in Chicago — there are three left on the schedule.
“I ain’t got a choice, man,” Jarrett said. “I’m really trying to just embrace it, to be honest.
“And it’s been a cool thing to be a part of this part of the year (after) spending my whole career in a domed stadium. But being a part of elements and letting it be in your advantage versus being the team going to visit it, it’s been cool being on the side of it.”
Theo Benedet, offensive tackle: You can take one guess how the Vancouver, British Columbia, native feels about this cold-weather business.
“I’m fired up because I think that’s an advantage for me personally and for the whole team because you know we train in this all the time,” he said. “It’s just Soldier Field. No one knows the weather, the wind there, better than us, so I’m excited.”
The Bears offense leaves the field during the first quarter of a 35-13 loss to the Bills on Dec. 24, 2022, at Soldier Field. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)
Take his opinion with a grain of rock salt. Typically it’s the offensive linemen who are sleeveless in even the most biting climates.
“Well, I’m afraid they have more insulation than the other players,” Benedet said with a laugh.
But he added there’s another reason he and the other big guys up front embrace a forecast like Sunday’s: “It’s running-the-ball weather. So it’s a chance for us to really impose ourselves on the game, take the game over and control it.”
Bundled up Bears fans wait for the start of a game against the Eagles on Dec. 18, 2022, at Soldier Field. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Caleb Williams, quarterback: Yes, he did play quarterback for USC, but he also has “Iceman” as one of his nicknames. If the cold or wind affects him even slightly, he’s certainly not letting on.
“I’ve played in some cold games already here and I’ve played in some cold games before,” said Williams, who’s in his second season with the Bears. “I believe that weather and the elements don’t bother me.
“So just being able to get warm, get my body warm and then go out there and deliver good balls to my guys and let them go make plays.”
Kyle Monangai, running back: It was snowing during Monangai’s final game at Rutgers, a 41-14 romp at host Michigan State. The temperature was 24 degrees.
“I had played in some, like, light flurries, but that was consistent snow. It was very cold,” he said.
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Monangai recalled wearing extra layers and gloves and using hand warmers but said footing was a problem.
“East Lansing, the grass isn’t as good — no shade to them — but I’ve got to wear the right cleats, the right footing, to make sure you’re cutting within yourself, you don’t slip and slide. That’s really the only difference.”
He doesn’t anticipate having to make similar adjustments for Soldier Field.
“Nah, man, we do a good job,” he said. “I think Soldier’s got good grass, and we’re used to it more than anybody, obviously. We know how to properly place our feet to cut well, so we’re not too worried about it. It’s just going to be cold.”
Colston Loveland, tight end: Loveland said coaches preach that they look at the cold as an advantage: “They like to tell us that’s where we thrive.”
Even though he played for the Michigan Wolverines, “it never got too cold, man. We didn’t play past Thanksgiving, so never had — probably like a 35-degree game maybe or something, 30-degree game, so not too bad.”
Still, he’s well familiar with how chilly the Midwest can get, so he doesn’t do anything special to prepare for cold-weather games.
“Just wear a coat and sit on the bench if I get cold, really,” Loveland said. “They’ve got the heaters and everything there, so they make it pretty good for us.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/11/chicago-bears-cold-weather-soldier-field/
