Amid the holiday hustle and bustle, take time to care for yourself
This is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but often it’s the most stressful. “The season to be merry is also the season for stress and anxiety,” says Jyl Glunt, a health and wellness specialist at the Excela Health Well-Being Center-Mind Body Health. “Shopping, decorating, parties,...
Health Happenings: Week of Dec. 9
Classes/programs • Childbirth and beyond weekender version, covering labor and birth options for pain control, cesarean birth, postpartum, the normal newborn and breathing/relaxation techniques, is planned 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturday, Excela Square at Latrobe, 100 Excela Health Drive • Childbirth and Beyond, a two-week class meets from 6:30-9 p.m. Mondays...
Rick Gates seeks to avoid jail at sentencing for conspiracy
Former Trump campaign official Rick Gates asked a judge to spare him from prison, put him on probation and order him to do community service for his crimes of conspiracy and lying to federal investigators. In a court filing Monday, Gates said he has accepted responsibility “in every way possible.”...
Democrats roll out impeachment charges; Trump left ‘no choice’Video
WASHINGTON — House Democrats announced two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on Tuesday, declaring he “betrayed the nation” with his actions toward Ukraine as they pushed toward historic proceedings that are certain to help define his presidency and shape the 2020 election. The specific charges aimed at removing...
Supreme Court leaves Kentucky’s ultrasound abortion law in place
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday left in place a Kentucky law requiring doctors to perform ultrasounds and show fetal images to patients before abortions. The justices did not comment in refusing to review an appeals court ruling that upheld the law. Enforcement of the law had been on...
Report: U.S. misled public on progress in Afghanistan war
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government across three White House administrations misled the public about failures in the Afghanistan war, often suggesting success where it didn’t exist, according to thousands of pages of documents obtained by The Washington Post. The documents reveal deep frustrations about America’s conduct of the Afghanistan war,...
White House backs emerging deal on consumer health costs
WASHINGTON — The White House endorsed an emerging bipartisan agreement Monday on legislation aimed at curbing rising health care costs, including taking steps to limit “surprise” medical bills that can plague patients treated in emergency rooms. While the deal’s fate remained uncertain, enactment would give President Donald Trump and lawmakers...
Pennsylvania warns Dauphin County over defying voting machine edict
HARRISBURG — A Pennsylvania county is being told it would lose out on millions of dollars in aid and almost certainly be sued by the state if it refuses to take action to buy new voting machines before Dec. 31, county officials said Monday. Dauphin County Commissioner Mike Pries said...
Police: Customer accused in Golden Corral worker’s stabbing in Ohio
SANDUSKY, Ohio — A customer is accused in the fatal stabbing of a restaurant employee outside the business after the two had argued earlier, police in Ohio said Monday. Perkins Township officers were called Sunday night to a Golden Corral on reports of a stabbing, police Chief Robb Parthemore said...
Army major in Georgia jailed on federal child porn charge
SAVANNAH, Ga. — An Army officer who held a top-secret security clearance shared nude photos of a teenage girl online and discussed plans to drug the girl and have sex with her, according to federal court records unsealed Monday. Army Maj. Jason Musgrove was arrested and charged with distributing child...
Pension strikes cripple Paris, more travel woes ahead
PARIS — Paris commuters inched to work Monday through massive traffic jams as strikes against retirement plan changes halted trains and subways for a fifth straight day — with the prospect of a tougher day ahead. French President Emmanuel Macron girded for one of the toughest weeks of his presidency...
Amazon says Trump’s ‘improper pressure’ doomed Pentagon bid
Amazon says President Donald Trump’s “improper pressure” and behind-the-scenes attacks harmed its chances of winning a $10 billion Pentagon contract. The Pentagon awarded the cloud computing contract to Microsoft in October. Amazon argues in a lawsuit unsealed Monday in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims that the decision should be...
FBI was justified in probing Trump-Russia, fed watchdog saysVideo
WASHINGTON — The FBI was justified in opening its investigation into ties between the Trump presidential campaign and Russia and did not act with political bias, the Justice Department’s internal watchdog declared Monday, undercutting President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that he has been the target of a “witch hunt.” The...
Police: California man rehearsed mass shooting plot on video
SAN DIEGO — A man was arrested after authorities received a tip that he had posted videos online that appear to show him pointing weapons and practicing to carry out a mass shooting from a downtown San Diego hotel room. Steve Homoki was scheduled to be arraigned Monday, the San...
Trump, Dems in tentative deal on North American trade pact
WASHINGTON — House Democrats have reached a tentative agreement with labor leaders and the White House over a rewrite of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal that has been a top priority for President Donald Trump. That’s according to a Democratic aide not authorized to discuss the talks and granted anonymity. Details...
Iran ready for more prisoner swaps with U.S., not negotiations
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran is ready for more prisoner swaps with the United States, the Cabinet spokesman said Monday even as he reiterated the Iranian leadership’s stance that there will be no other negotiations between Tehran and Washington. The remarks by the spokesman, Ali Rabiei, were the first after a...
Prosecutor warns public after cluster of drug overdoses around Reading
READING — A district attorney in southeastern Pennsylvania issued a public health warning Monday in the wake of a series of drug overdoses, some of them deadly, believed to involve the same substance. Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams said that a dozen people overdosed over the weekend in...
Cyberattack downs city computers in site of navy attackVideo
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Federal authorities are investigating a cyberattack on the city of Pensacola, Fla., home to the naval air station where a Saudi flight student killed three sailors and wounded eight others on Friday. A spokeswoman for the city said federal authorities were alerted to the cyberattack as a...
Banking the old-fashioned way this holiday season
The holidays are here, and SSB Bank is focusing on the gifts that set community banks apart and keep customers coming back for more. First, let’s look at some facts. Community bank borrowers are more successful and satisfied than those of other institutions, outperforming mega-banks and online lenders, according to...
5 dead, many more missing in eruption of New Zealand volcanoVideo
WHAKATANE, New Zealand — A volcano on a New Zealand island erupted Monday with a towering blast of ash and scalding steam as tourists were exploring the moon-like surface, killing five people and leaving perhaps two dozen others missing. Police said the site was still too dangerous hours later for...
Kennesaw State cheerleader punished for kneeling awarded $145,000Video
A former Kennesaw State cheerleader who kneeled during the national anthem in 2017 was awarded $145,000 in a lawsuit settlement. Tommia Dean filed the lawsuit in 2018 when the cheerleaders took on criticism from their public protest over police brutality before a game in Georgia. The school responded by ordering...
Watchdog expected to find Russia probe valid, despite flawsVideo
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department’s internal watchdog will release a highly anticipated report Monday that is expected to reject President Donald Trump’s claims that the Russia investigation was illegitimate and tainted by political bias from FBI leaders. But it is also expected to document errors during the investigation that may...
Police: 3 dead, 1 injured when vehicle strikes building in Ohio
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A vehicle crashed into a building early Sunday, leaving three people dead and a fourth person critically injured, police in Ohio said. Columbus police said officers responded to an alarm at an NTB Tire & Service Center around 3 a.m. Sunday and found that a vehicle had...
Police: Hunter killed in Wayne County propane explosion
HONESDALE — State police say a Florida man was killed while hunting in northeastern Pennsylvania when his portable propane heater exploded. Police in Wayne County say 81-year-old Gregory Scheer of Chiefland, Fla., was hunting from a stand on the ground and using a portable propane heater in Texas Township. Police...
Female minister, 34-year-old Sanna Marin, tapped to become Finland’s youngest PM
TALLINN, Estonia — A 34-year-old transport minister and lawmaker has been tapped to become Finland’s youngest prime minister ever and its third female government leader. Finland’s ruling Social Democratic Party council voted 32-29 late Sunday to name Sanna Marin over rival Antti Lindtman to take over the government’s top post...
