No matter where in the USA you live, there's a terrific (and probably surprising) road trip destination nearby. This summer, gas up the car, pack up the family, and see these amazing destinations organized by state. We found heart-pounding fun in all fifty states. Gas up the car, pack up your gear, and make it a memorable summer-no matter where you live. Alabama Huntsville: At Space Camp you'll get your hands on flight simulators, lunar landers, model rockets, and more. Alaska Homer: Take a floatplane with Bald Mountain Air Service to see grizzlies in their natural habitat. Arizona Phoenix: At Allen Berg Racing Schools , drive a carbon-fiber formula race car on your first day. Afterward, examine data to see how you did. Arkansas Murfreesboro: Crater of Diamonds State Park is the only place the public can dig for diamonds--and keep what they find. California Oceanside: Paintball at Camp Pendleton, a Marine Corps base: Take cover behind helicopters and tanks. Fire at will. Colorado Mosca: Zip down 750-foot hills at Great Sand Dunes National Park on a sled (from the Oasis Store) built for the desert. Connecticut East Haddam: Overland Experts teach Navy Seals how to drive 4x4s off-road. They'll teach you, too--with a vehicle-agnostic approach. You'll leave able to drive anything. Delaware Milton: Learn about the dark arts of beer making from the mad scientists at Dogfish Head Craft Brewery . Florida Just a few miles off the coast of Miami is the first completed stage of the world s largest man-made reef, designed to evoke the fabled city of Atlantis. The Neptune Memorial Reef is free to scuba dive through, and many people do so to visit loved ones--it s possible to have ashes interred there. Georgia In Garden City, Georgia, go on a Discovery Flight with Amphibian Air : A 90-minute trip during which you'll go up in-and learn to fly-an amphibious tricycle. Hawaii Honolulu: At Island Watersports Hawaii , get a scuba-like experience on a self-propelled submarine scooter. Idaho Riggins: Rafting the Salmon River's lower gorge with Western River Expeditions is an adrenalized geology lesson: The canyon is 3,000 feet deep. Illinois Chicago: Paddle the Chicago River with Urban Kayaks for a leisurely tour of the city's architecture, including dramatic skyline views. Indiana Indianapolis: At the Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust , see the famed monster airplane V-12s and jet engines. Iowa Decorah: NEI Fly Fishing guides will take you to their favorite streams in the gorgeous Driftless Area. Kansas Milford: The twelve-hour Break Up Adventure Race includes cycling, paddling, running, and a few surprise events on and around Milford Lake. Kentucky Louisville: A hundred-acre former limestone quarry at Louisville Mega Cavern Bike Park houses the world's largest indoor--and only underground--facility of its kind. Louisiana At the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, you'll take on the identity of a real veteran, learning their story as you progress through the museum's exhibits. Maine Lubec: Sail with Downeast Charter Boat Tours to Old Sow Whirlpool, a vast aquatic vortex. Maryland Cumberland: Travel old-school through the Alleghenies on the steam-powered Western Maryland Scenic Railroad. Massachusetts Martha's Vineyard: Sail on Black Dog Tall Ships -either a restored 90-year-old vessel or one piloted by the man who designed it in the sixties. Michigan Munising: The crew at Shipwreck Tours navigates the sunken vessels of Lake Superior in glass-bottom boats. Minnesota Soudan: Ride a cart 2,300 feet below ground for a tour of Soudan Underground Mine State Park . Mississippi Biloxi: Rent a pontoon boat from Biloxi Boardwalk Marina and spend a day cruising the Gulf Coast shore, fishing and daydreaming. Missouri Branson: The Track Family Fun Parks boast a pair of four-story, 1,000-plus-foot-long go-kart tracks. Montana West Glacier: Help researchers count and observe mountain goats in Glacier National Park's steep backcountry. Nebraska Valentine: At the Nebraska Star Party , take a field course on identifying the celestial centerpieces of the prairie night sky. Nevada Reno: The BaseCamp Outdoor Wall is 164 feet up, the nation's highest climbing wall. Look down at your own risk. New Hampshire Sargent's Purchase: Mt. Washington isn't just a hall-of-fame hike--it's also home to the highest wind speed ever observed by man (231 miles per hour) outside of a tornado. New Jersey Browns Mills: Take a moonlit hiking tour of Whitesbog , a now-abandoned village created to process fruit from nearby cranberry and blueberry bogs, on the Saturday closest to each full moon. New Mexico In Santa Fe, an old bowling alley purchased by one George R. R. Martin has been converted into an arts center by the collective Meow Wolf. The centerpiece: The House of Eternal Return , a 20,000-square-foot art-installation-slash-disappearing-family-interactive-mystery-story. New York Lake Placid: Bank turns on the Lake Placid Bobsled Experience near Whiteface Mountain (a 1980 Olympics venue) in summer. North Carolina Raeford: Go indoor skydiving at one of the world's largest vertical wind tunnels, Paraclete XP SkyVenture . North Dakota Heed TR's request and visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park . After his wife and mother died on the same day, Roosevelt went West. In 1884, he wrote to a guide friend from the Northeast: "I hope my Western venture turns out well. If it does, and I feel sure that you will do well for yourself by coming out with me, I will take you and Dow out next August..." Ohio On South Bass Island in Ohio, underneath Heineman's Winery, there's a strange Crystal Cave . Go for the tour, and slowly it'll dawn on you: You are inside the world's largest geode. Oklahoma Oklahoma City: Hit the road for up to twelve hours a day chasing tornadoes with experts from Storm Chasing Adventure Tours . Oregon Rogue River: Take a jetboat , which has an incredibly shallow draft, over rapids in the Rogue River that boats have no business traversing. Pennsylvania Breezewood: Explore two tunnels along a thirteen-mile stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike bypassed in 1968 by a modern highway. Rhode Island Block Island: Ocean Adventures will teach you how to spearfish amidst a piscine interstate highway off the shores of rustic Block Island . South Carolina Winnsboro: Carolina Adventure World features a drag strip-for ATVs. The 300-foot-long track is lit and timed. South Dakota You've seen the signs for hundreds of miles. Just do it. Just go to Wall Drug off Interstate 90. Tennessee Check out June's Secret City Festival in Oak Ridge, a town that was established under cover of darkness for engineers working on the Manhattan Project. Texas San Antonio: Batman: The Ride is a Six Flags roller coaster with unique rider-inversion technology. Utah Sevier County: The Paiute ATV Trail runs for more than 2,000 miles through canyons and past elk herds. Vermont You can tour the world s largest deep-hole, dimension granite quarry in Graniteville. Virginia Meadows of Dan: Stay in the ultraluxe Golden Eagle Tree House at Primland, a multisport resort with hunting and fishing. Washington Cougar: At two miles, the Mount St. Helens Ape Cave Lava Tube makes you feel 8 years old again. West Virginia White Sulphur Springs: Tour the federal government's once-classified bunker-a Cold War fallout shelter for Congress-under the Greenbrier resort. Wisconsin In Madison, you can take a self-guided tour of the Epic Software campus . You might not have heard of Epic, but your doctor probably has-they are a giant in the world of medical record software. More importantly, their campus is bizarre and amazing, including a drawbridge, a treehouse, and underground tunnels. Wyoming Ranchester: After a how-to clinic, help wrangle the Double Rafter ranch's herd to summer grass.


A Georgia deputy was shot and killed late Sunday night while responding to a stolen car and was reportedly hit by gunfire from one of the suspects. The deputy from Hall County was not immediately identified in local reports. WSBTV reported that the incident occurred at 11:15 p.m. local time. The GBI has responded to an officer involved shooting in Hall County. We are working to gather details. pic.twitter.com/64dQt5UiEG   GA Bureau of Invest (@GBI_GA) July 8, 2019 The believed shooter was also hit by gunfire, the report said. He was rushed to a nearby hospital and his condition was not clear. There is a multi-agency hunt for other suspects in the area.


In one sense Rich Mehas is like most any hot rodder you'll ever meet: he likes a wide range of hot rods, going to car shows, rompin' on his go-pedal, hangin' out with his car club buddies (the Old Farts Racing Team), and maintaining a couple of nice rides in his garage. But Rich has another side: he's a Dodge guy. If you've ever met a fan of Chrysler, Plymouth, and/or Dodge then you know they're a little different bunch, and proud of it. Growing up in California in the '50s and '60s, Rich lived through the Golden Age of hot rodding (he graduated high school in 1964) and, to shake off the daily grind over the next few decades, would drive out to the desert with friends, family, kids, and grandkids and ride the sand dunes and beat the snot out of whatever they were in. One particular couple Rich and his wife, Karen, would meet up with out in the Glamis desert with their ATV, trailers, and buggies was Rocky and Donna Paciulli, who brought their family, too, including a two-year-old Lang Paciulli, who Rich watched grow up. As Lang got older, his love of cars took over his life and, even while in high school, having a big or fast motor wasn't enough he wanted something bigger and faster yet! He dove head-first into turbos and nitrous and, by the time he was just 19, he had his first engine/car-building shop. Street racing was a large part of Lang's early life, and one of his high school buddies had a semi-crappy-looking 1966 Dodge Coronet. Maybe a bit odd looking to start with for some folks, it was made to look worse by the fact it had a paint roller-applied yellow paint job that had been done in the driveway of a farm field. But the '66 had a fairly-fast 440 during the time Lang was in high school but, once he opened up his first shop, the car made its way into a bay and torn down for a build. As the owner got into it, his attention was drawn to off-road racing trucks, the project sat and gathered dust. As fate would have it, Mehas was never far from Lang's endeavors and, being in the construction business, literally helped expand Lang's business over the years. Nowadays LP Racing (Ontario, CA) covers 8,000 square feet, employs four people, and also has a chassis dyno room where he can test what he builds. Over time, Lang also worked on Rich's rides, including his '67 Camaro that he's owned for 31 years and a '34 Ford Tudor (which is Karen's car), so at one point he suggested Rich take over the Coronet project. Rich thought it kind of ugly in a cute way, but what sealed the deal was when Lang gave him a ride in a customer's 2,000-horse, twin-turbo Camaro. Having a real fast car is what Rich wanted, and Lang certainly knew how to get the job done. Everything Rich and Lang wanted to do with the car had to work off a great base, and LP Racing developed a chassis that included a dual A-arm front suspension plus rear components such as ladder bars, a wishbone locator, and a 1.5-inch anti-roll bar, all set up with a 118-inch wheelbase. Safety was a prime concern, too, so a 25.4 SFI-certified 1.625-inch chromoly roll cage was also incorporated into the car's design. The 10-inch AFCOIL front springs are rated at 450 pounds while the rear uses 14-inch, 80-pound springs wrapped around Menscer Motorsports canister shocks. The ladder bars were set up with a bunch of anti-squat for the radial tires, and an MSD ARC (Advance RPM Control Module) rpm curve control device was also installed. Wilwood disc brakes (6-piston 13-inch fronts and 4-piston 11.5-inch rear discs) control the stop, and the Dodge rolls on 17-inch RC Comp front wheels wrapped in Mickey Thompson 26-inch tires and Champion 15 x 14-inch double-beadlock rear wheels shod in Mickey Thompson 315/60-15 radial slicks. Though the car never really looked great during its early life due to the rolled-on paint job, once Rich and Lang decided to have the body blasted, it turned out to have a pretty nice body. Metalwork was done by LP Racing and included opening the rear wheel arches for the bigger wheels (along with new aluminum wheel tubs), removing the windwing to install one-piece door glass and it's custom trim, tightening up all of the car's gaps, making a 20-gallon gas tank, flush-mounting the Lexan-type polycarbonate backlite, windshield, and side glass made by Optic Armor Performance Windows, and custom fab'ing the grille, spoiler, and twin headlight mounts. LP initially created a fiberglass cowl-induction-type hood scoop, added it to the steel hood, then made a mold from the design so they could pull a new hood made from carbon fiber out of it. Even though the car is a bit brick-shaped, advances in aerodynamics were achieved with shaving the drip rails off the car, adding a belly pan under the engine, and tucking the handmade front and rear bumpers (which are finished in brushed nickle) in close to the body, which also helped the aesthetics in the process. Bodywork on the big Dodge was handled by Jay and Colleen Jorgensen at Speedway Customs in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, who blocked everything straight before a 2011 Corvette ZR1 blue paint was sprayed over everything. Starting life as a 440 Wedge motor, displacement in Rich's ride is now 540 inches. A Keith Black aluminum block was used and modified for a roller thrust bearing and pressurized lifter oiling. ProLine Racing Engines in Ball Ground, Georgia, assembled the beast using a 4.25-inch billet crank, 7.250-inch BME aluminum rods, and Diamond Competition Series pistons with Total Seal rings, and set up with a 9.5:1 compression ratio. Breathing life into the engine is aided by an Indy Cylinder Head 4500-type manifold topped with a CSU 1000-cfm blow-through carb that works with twin Precision/Garrett GT4788 turbochargers, cooled by a LP Racing air-to-air intercooler. Fuel arrives via two delivery systems: an Aeromotive A1000 electric pump and/or a cable-driven Waterman mechanical fuel pump. An MSD Power Grid ignition system supplies the spark, and engine info is relayed to a dash-mounted Racepak IQ3 Street Logger viewing screen. A Speedwire Systems switch panel and relay board was also wired up for added control. Ignition for the ride came from MSD in the form of a billet distributor, a crank trigger system, a HVC-II coil, and Firecore plug wires and NGK RS671A-8 plugs. Extracting spent gasses was made easier with a pair of LP Racing polished stainless steel 2.125-to-3.50-inch headers that empty into 4-inch aluminum tubing (outfitted with a Racepak oxygen sensor) and out stainless-steel exits. Helping cool the engine is the responsibilities of a Meziere water pump and aluminum radiator, shroud, and twin fans from Ron Davis, and the ride's electrical needs (i.e. the Meziere starter) come from a 160-amp alternator and fed by dual Odyssey batteries. Helping get the engine's power to the ground is a Rossler Turbo 400 transmission with a ProTorque Revolution converter dialed in with a 3500-4000 rpm stall. A transbrake is also utilized as well as twin coolers, and shifts are made with a Precision Performance Products air shifter. A Precision Shaft Technologies' carbon 1350 driveshaft gets the power to the nine-inch Ford-type spooled rear fab'd by LP Racing and built with a Richmond 3.70:1 ring and pinion and 40-spline Mark Williams axles. The interior of the Dodge was converted over to a workspace to manage everything going on. The dash, with the Racepak IQ3 info screen mounted in front of the driver, is removable for easy maintenance, and the car was wired by LP Racing. Kirkey aluminum seats were modified to be used here and what little upholstery there is comes in the form of leather with carbon fiber inserts, capably stitched by Ron Mangus of Rialto, California. DJ Safety supplied most of the safety components used inside the car, including the five-point seat belts, the window netting, and a 20-pound ColdFire suppression system. The master kill switch is a long one, mounted off the rear bumper to clear the rear air fin. Rich and Lang expect the Coronet, which weighs in at 3,400 pounds without the driver, to have a top speed of just under 200-mph, a quarter mile time in the mid-7s at 185mph, and capable of producing about 2,000 horsepower or more on race gas and a special tune from LP Racing. Heady performance for a street car indeed! The project took six years (more "off' than "on") to complete, and Rich feels he and Lang built a pretty nice car together. There's nothing more important to Rich than family and, considering the 30 years he's known Lang and his parents, they're about as close to being relatives as you can get. The Coronet debuted at the 2019 Grand National Roadster Show, winning its class as well as a handful of other trophies in its so-far short "show" life. But driving his Dodge is what Rich really wants to do. Although his wife commented she'll "Never ride in that son of a *****," she softened her opinion when they got to drive up to the award's platform to collect another trophy and, after showing it around a bit more, he plans to put many miles on his beast. Some real fast miles.


When President Trump unveiled plans to launch a trade war with China early last year, Marisa Bedrosian Kosters, an executive at an Anaheim-based ceramic tile and stone retailer, sprang into action. Like many of the tens of thousands of retailers who move Chinese goods through Southern California's giant port complex, Bedrosians Tile and Stone turbocharged its imports to get ahead of the threatened tariffs and other duties. But when its new supplies from Foshan reached the Port of Long Beach, the company, which has outlets in 10 states, ran into a massive traffic jam. With thousands of extra containers piled up dockside, Kosters struggled to get her tiles off ships and onto trucks, incurring thousands of dollars in extra costs assessed by the terminals. And now she faces a supply glut. Her 389,000-square-foot tile distribution center is overflowing, and she has had to store more than 7,500 pallets outside. "There's no space inside," she said. "We don't have anywhere to put the materials." Meanwhile, despite the bottlenecks, "We're having to bring in more because there's so much uncertainty about what country is being hit next." Perhaps nowhere in the United States is the tariff war with China having a more tangible effect than at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the nation's leading gateway for trans-Pacific trade. The complex handles 47.5% of U.S. containerized trade with China - including toys, bicycles, furniture, electronics, sneakers, scrap paper, cotton, soybeans and auto parts. The tariffs have thrown a giant wrench into Southern California logistics industries, rippling through a broad web of companies that handle shipping, trucking, railroads, warehousing, construction, manufacturing and farming. Nearly a million jobs in the five-county region are tied to international trade. The tariff fallout has "really gummed up the operations of the supply chain," said Eugene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles. "We've got a lot of cargo coming in that just sits. Containers are stacked high. Truck lines are long. And warehouses are bursting at the seams." Southern California's warehousing and distribution complex, the largest in the world with 1.8 billion square feet within 50 miles of the ports, has less than 1% vacancy, down from the usual 5% to 7%, he added. The effect on corporate decision making may be less visible, but it is worrisome, Seroka said. "A lot of money is sitting on the sidelines," he said. "Do you buy more trucks? Do you hire more people? Do you build another warehouse? Do you invest in digital technology? Few companies want to invest at this point in time in the supply chain, not knowing where it is going in the future." Related video: The automation effect at ports of LA and Long Beach (provided by CBS Los Angeles) Over more than a century, the twin ports, which moved $506 billion worth of goods for 212,000 companies last year, have thrived. Container traffic last year reached record levels. The more than 17.5 million units of cargo that moved in 2018 marked a 20% increase over five years ago. But since last April, as the Trump administration began slapping tariffs on Chinese products - eventually escalating them to 25% on $250 billion worth of goods - the ports' growth pattern has been upended. China pushed back with tariffs on $60 billion worth of U.S. exports. At the twin ports, containerized imports from China surged in the summer and fall, and then fell by 11.9% in the first four months of this year compared with the first four months of 2018. Over the same period, exports to China plummeted by 27.4%. Now Trump's threat to tariff an additional $300 billion in Chinese imports is creating even more uncertainty. It would mean a tax on nearly everything that the U.S. buys from China and would probably trigger more Chinese retaliation. "There is a lot of concern about jobs," said Mario Cordero, executive director of the Port of Long Beach. "We have 10,000 dockworkers. If they're not called to do work, they don't earn money. The less cargo we have, the less demand for logistics workers, for warehouse workers. Whether you're a trucker or a clerk or you work in manufacturing, the tariffs affect the whole supply chain." Jock O'Connell, a trade expert at Beacon Economics, a Los Angeles consultancy, foresees "a prolonged and bruising period of trade turbulence" between the U.S. and China. Tariffs on the additional $300 billion in Chinese goods could take effect as early as July, he said, and another import surge could tie up California ports as companies seek to get ahead of the new taxes. As China retaliates, it will hammer companies that had identified that fast-growing nation as a prime opportunity for expansion. "It won't have a catastrophic effect on the Southern California economy," O'Connell said. "But if you are a company struggling to do business with China, it could be devastating." Although they have set records for growth, largely thanks to imports from China, the Southern California ports have lost market share in recent decades to competitors on the East and Gulf coasts and in Canada and Mexico. The trend accelerated after a 2014-15 labor conflict that led to massive congestion. Logistics experts worry that tariff-related bottlenecks could encourage shifts to other ports. "The supply chain needs a lot of work," said Weston LaBar, CEO of the Harbor Trucking Assn., which represents several hundred local trucking firms. "Now we're seeing many of the same issues we saw during the complete gridlock in late 2014 and early 2015." But not as severe. Then, ships stacked up for days, unable to unload as dockside work slowed during contentious contract negotiations between the shipping industry and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. But as with that earlier snarl-up, tariffs are a threat to the intricate manufacturing supply chain that the ports support, LaBar said. "So, for instance, China imports scrap metal from the U.S. and recycles it into slab steel. A steel company in Los Angeles imports it back from China and turns it into rolled steel for the aerospace industry," he said. "Now that L.A. company, because of the China tariffs, has had to source steel from Brazil. But there's a cap on how much slab steel they can import from Brazil. And there are hundreds of manufacturers all over the country looking at layoffs because of these tariffs." Snafus at the port complex have been "a nightmare," said Steve Hughes, president and CEO of HCS International, an auto parts consultancy. As companies scrambled to get ahead of the tariffs by ordering months' worth of inventory, containers normally stacked three or four high after being unloaded from a vessel were piled seven high, he said. "Imagine yours is at the bottom: You have to unload and stack six others before you can get to it," Hughes said. "One client called me at the end of January. A large importer in Torrance. He had 10 or 15 containers stuck inside a terminal since November. They were actually lost." When the containers were finally found, Hughes added, the terminal, owned by a global shipping company, charged the importer tens of thousands of dollars for exceeding the usual three-day storage window. Under the controversial practice known as "demurrage," Hughes said, "you have to pay before you can pick them up. You are blackmailed." The import surge also spurred ocean carriers to ignore agreed-to rates in signed contracts with cargo owners, Hughes said. "Freight volumes went up," he said. "Ships were full. Rates went from about $1,000 per container unit to $2,000. If you didn't pay, your cargo sat in Asia." As the trade war escalates, the most economically vulnerable workers will suffer, predicted O'Connell, the Beacon Economics trade expert. "Truck drivers are paid by the load, and fewer loads impact their income," he said. "And warehouse workers from Los Angeles and the Inland Empire up to the San Joaquin Valley are mostly temps. They are sent to work by temp agencies on demand, and they are sent home when the number of boxes declines." Despite talk of moving supply chains from China to Vietnam, Malaysia, Bangladesh or West Africa, he said, "How fast can you build a new manufacturing facility and move all your component suppliers into a cluster in a new country? We are already starting to hit a wall in Vietnam where the transportation sector - with inadequate roads and ports - is overwhelmed." Trump has contended that U.S. manufacturers can fill the void as importers exit the China trade. But like many U.S. business executives, Kosters, the Anaheim tile merchant, doesn't see how. "For ceramic and porcelain tile, domestic producers currently only have capacity to produce about 30% of the U.S. market demand," she said. "China is the largest exporter of ceramic tile to the U.S. (with) 31.5% of U.S. imports in square feet in 2018." Sourcing her inventory from other countries would mean "discontinuing more collections than I would like to think about and having to trash tens of millions of dollars in marketing materials," she said. "Our company will also need to reinvest millions of dollars in marketing collateral for new replacement collections." Kosters is keeping a stiff upper lip. "We're doing the best we can to anticipate what the next moves will be and what other countries might be affected, or product segments," she said. "We're going to come out fine on the other side, but it's still a huge, huge transition." Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com


Golfers around the world can relate to Patrick Reed after he destroyed a wedge at the U.S. Open on Friday. Reed tried to chip out of rough from off the 18th green at Pebble Beach, but he hit the ball thin and the shot stayed in the tall grass. That angered Reed, who decided to imitate a baseball player after a frustrating strikeout. Patrick Reed channels Bo Jackson, snaps the club over his knee. #USOpen pic.twitter.com/2y4P38ix8b   Carson Cunningham (@KOCOCarson) June 15, 2019 MORE: Woods fuming after bogey-bogey finish To make this even more glorious, here's a super slo-mo replay. Patrick Reed snaps his club over his leg on No. 18... pic.twitter.com/BnOWolZjTC   FOX Sports: Golf (@GolfonFOX) June 15, 2019 Reed double-bogeyed the hole to leave him at 2 over par for the tournament, which is right on the projected cut line. Twitter, which wins every major, had jokes. Patrick Reed on 18 is all of us. Shirt untucked, 3 foot wedge chunk, wants to snap club pic.twitter.com/x4F2trZDkH   Nick Gleason (@nickgleason1) June 15, 2019 Smart move by Patrick Reed snapping that wedge over his knee. Obviously just trying to get under the 50-pound baggage limit for his flight home tonight.   Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelTAN) June 15, 2019 Watching Patrick Reed blow up on 18 #USOpen pic.twitter.com/UlKE1m5Bll   Mark (@MarkB_3) June 15, 2019 Patrick Reed not mad ok? pic.twitter.com/rBYxYIxdoN   Big Cat (@BarstoolBigCat) June 15, 2019


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump is still committed to a pressure campaign to force Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to step aside to make way for opposition leader Juan Guaido, Washington's envoy for Venezuela said on Tuesday. The campaign has failed to dislodge Maduro, who has the support of Russia and China. Arguing that Maduro's 2018 re-election was illegitimate, Guaido invoked Venezuela's constitution in January to declare himself interim president with backing from the United States and other Western countries. Elliott Abrams, U.S. special representative for Venezuela, brushed aside questions over whether Washington had lost interest amid other pressing foreign policy issues such as tensions with Iran and China trade talks. He also firmly rejected the possibility that Maduro could be part of a unity government in Venezuela. "It is hard to see how he is part of the solution or could be part of a transition government," Abrams told reporters. Citing examples that Venezuela remained a priority for the administration, Abrams said Trump raised the topic with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during their June 20 meeting. Vice President Mike Pence also traveled to Miami to help send off the U.S. Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort on a medical mission to South America to help with displaced Venezuelans. "It is not a sign of uninterest," said Abrams. "The notion that there is at the highest levels of the government a diminution of interest is just simply false." Without elaborating, Abrams said the number of countries which have announced their support for Guaido will soon grow from a current 54 nations. "There will be a change in that number," he said. MILITARY DEFECTOR Abrams said he hoped to meet with Manuel Cristopher, a Venezuelan general who turned against Maduro, who is now in the United States. Slideshow by photo services "He is in the U.S. and he is a free man. I would like to talk to him myself, and I assume other U.S. officials would like to because he quite obviously ... has a lot of interesting things to say about the Maduro regime and about life in Venezuela," Abrams said. Abrams said the administration "did not bring" Cristopher to the United States, but added: "We're happy he is here, makes it easier to have more conversations with him." Maduro has accused Cristopher, who was the head of the South American country's Sebin intelligence service, of conspiring to help Guaido's uprising by releasing opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, who was under a house arrest enforced by Sebin. (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; editing by Jonathan Oatis)


Fully restored and heading for auction! The '50s were an amazing decade when it came to the designs of classic cars, and this 1958 Dodge Royal Lancer is a lovely example. If you can't get enough fin action and baby blue paint in your life, then you'll want to check out this magnificent Mopar as it crosses the GAA Classic Cars auction block on Saturday July 27. This two-door hardtop has been fully restored with new paint and interior as well as a rebuilt 361 CID V-8. This engine will purr as you float down the highway! From the factory, this 1958 Dodge Royal came equipped with features such as power steering, power brakes, power windows, power seat and air conditioning, and since then, it has been upgraded with amenities that include disc brake conversion, electric fuel pump and an electric cooling fan. All of this was done to make this big Dodge as fun to drive as it is to show off. While the fins are big enough to grab your attention, the incredibly flawless baby blue over white paint job is what will surely get this car attention at cruise-ins and car shows alike. Lots of clean chrome and those lovely white-wall tires don't hurt this car's case either. The interior is just as nice too with a bigger dose of baby blue throughout the cabin, and a two-tone pattern on the bench seats. Inside and out, this car has everything there is to love about automotive design of the 1950s. If the looks alone aren't enough to make this car special, Dodge only offered the Royal Lancer from 1954 through 1959, so the added rarity should totally seal the deal. Be sure to tune into GAA Classic Cars auction later this month where this 1958 Dodge Royal Lancer will be just one of 650 classic and collector vehicles up for auction during the three-day event. Read More... 1950 Dodge Coronet Six Has Been Kept In One Family This Restored 1949 Dodge Power Wagon Is Beyond Cool


The teaching the #ProudToBe | #CSURams pic.twitter.com/jYKJLnrD24 - Colorado State Rams (@CSURams) July 11, 2019 Former Colts and Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was in Thibodaux, Louisiana this week to help with the annual "Manning Passing Academy." The quarterback camp is hosted by Archie Manning and two of his sons, Peyton and Eli. The family invites quarterback prospects in eighth through twelfth grade as well as college QBs to serve as camp counselors. After coaching up the high schoolers, the college players are coached up themselves by QBs with NFL experience, including Peyton and Eli. Drew Lock, Denver's second-round pick in this year's draft, was among the college QBs that attended last year's camp. This year's list of counselors included Colorado State junior Collin Hill. "He was awesome, really nice, super encouraging," Hill said in a recent interview with CSU's website . "It was weird at first to be dropping back and Peyton Manning just said, 'good ball.'" Peyton is helping coach up the next generation of QBs, including his nephew, Arch. The son of Cooper Manning will be a freshman at Isidore Newman this fall and he already looks like a promising prospect . MORE: Poker player loses brutal 31 million chip hand with pocket aces at 2019 WSOP Main Event News: Indefinite suspensions rule day for Cowboys, 18-game seasons Three Potential Landing Spots for Chris Paul WATCH: Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes throws football nearly out of Arrowhead Stadium The perfect storm: Andre Iguodala a possible return to the Warriors


The idea of hopping in an RV and hitting the open road in comfort can be intoxicating, but we have 18 reasons to rethink it, ranging from the cost of the purchase, upkeep, equipment, and insurance to the practical questions of where you can go and stay   and what to do with waste after traveling in a big box all day. ROAD WARRIORS, BEWARE For some, the American dream is to own a big house with a picket fence. For others, it's a house on wheels   a recreational vehicle such as a motorhome or fifth wheel   that can take them wherever they want, whenever they want, and vacation on the cheap . But RVs are a big-time investment, especially if you want one with all the comforts of home. Here are 18 reasons to think carefully before falling in love with an RV. RVS CAN BE INSANELY EXPENSIVE If you're planning to go big , a new Class A motorhome starts   yes, starts   around $50,000 to $100,000, according to RoverPass; with all the bells and whistles, they can push a million bucks . Smaller motorhomes won't approach seven figures, but still range from about $40,000 to $100,000. Travel trailers, pop-up campers and fifth wheels are more economical, starting around $10,000 to $15,000 and topping out around $50,000. BUYING AN RV CAN BE A MINEFIELD Very few people look forward to setting foot on a car dealer's lot , and it's no different with RVs. Buyers can expect to deal with similar frustrations, from rampant upselling and scare tactics to pricing games and salespeople ignorant about what they're selling. Study up before even thinking about going to a dealership, and don't be afraid to ask tons of questions and test every single part of the RV while you're there. RVS ARE GAS GUZZLERS No one ever accused RVs of being fuel efficient. The biggest motorhomes, Class A, will only get 8 to 13 mpg , according to the Camping & RVing British Columbia Coalition. Downsizing to a Class B or Class C could mean anywhere from 10 to 20 mpg, but a lower number is a better bet. At 10 mpg, that short 500-mile round trip will cost $150 in gas . That 2,500-mile cross-country dream trip? A cool $750 ... and that's just one way. RVS DEPRECIATE LIKE CRAZY Like any new vehicle, simply driving an RV off the lot causes a huge loss in value   around 21 percent , according to Camper Report. No matter what the size, once your RV is five years old, it's lost somewhere from 36 to 38 percent of its value; when it's 10 years old, you'll be lucky to get half of what you paid. Buying used may be the smartest financial move. RVS CAN BE TERRIFYING TO DRIVE RVs demand confident drivers who understand that larger vehicles require special skills behind the wheel. For instance, you'll need to learn how to park using mirrors instead of being able to judge distance and potential obstacles over your shoulder, and learn how to travel downhill without stomping constantly on the brakes. And you always have to remember that an RV cannot   and will not   stop on a dime. RVS AREN'T MEANT FOR URBAN EXPLORATION There's a reason compact cars are marketed heavily toward city dwellers: Space, especially parking, is at a premium   so good luck with that 40-foot behemoth. Motorhome USA goes so far as to recommend ditching the RV for a city sojourn, leaving it at a shopping mall or some other location with plenty of parking and using public transportation from there. Campanda has some suggestions for cities friendlier to RVs , including Las Vegas and Orlando. YOU CAN'T JUST PARK AN RV ANYWHERE FOR THE NIGHT Obviously, if you want to have the proper hookups for electricity and water, you'll need to find an RV park . Penny-pinchers may wonder if they can just pull over and "rough it" to save some dough. The answer? It depends, and if you don't make sure it's kosher ahead of time, you can get hit with steep fines for violating laws or regulations against overnight camping, RVshare warns. Even Walmart, which is famously welcoming to RVs, may not allow overnight parking , depending on local laws and management. YOU CAN'T ESCAPE HOUSEWORK IN AN RV In an RV, chores follow you on vacation. No dishwasher? That means washing dishes by hand, of course. There's sweeping and vacuuming, since floors and upholstery get dirty quickly when people tromp in and out all day. There's laundry, which often involves hunting down a laundromat, or doing the tiniest of loads in a portable washer. IT'S HARD NOT TO FEEL CRAMPED SOMETIMES Even in a massive RV with slide-out rooms, you just don't have much space. Models top out around 400 square feet   anything more, and they may be considered manufactured homes. Suffice it to say, sometimes sharing one tiny bathroom doesn't cut it. And the feeling that there's no privacy can extend outside at a campground, where there are other travelers living just feet away . YOU'LL HAVE YET ANOTHER INSURANCE BILL To stay street legal, you have to pony up for insurance. The bigger the RV, the bigger the bill is likely to be   perhaps $2,000 a year or more for Class A motorhomes, according to Trusted Choice. Of course, many other factors will affect the rate, including whether you'll be tooling around on the occasional weekend or living in it full-time; driving history; kind of deductible; and extras such as coverage for personal belongings and roadside assistance. UPKEEP IS EXPENSIVE, TOO Just like homes and cars, RVs are pricey to maintain. Mobile Home Parts Store surveyed several RV experts and found they spent an average $1,410 a year on RV upkeep , or nearly $118 a month. Of course, that includes routine tasks such as replacing tires, getting oil changes, and keeping brakes in top shape, but there are other RV-specific things to worry about as well. Think broken generators, awnings, windows, and slide motors. YOU'LL NEED A PLACE TO PARK AN RV WHEN IT'S NOT IN USE RVs are fabulous on the open road, but what about at home? Not everyone is lucky enough to have a massive garage or a long driveway. Simply parking a big RV in the driveway might not even be allowed, depending on whether you have a homeowners' association that considers it an eyesore. Of course, there are facilities that will store an RV for you, but that's yet another bill. Depending on the size of the RV and the type of storage (bigger RVs and climate-controlled storage cost more), you could pay anywhere from $30 to $450 a month . YOU'RE STILL VULNERABLE TO THE ELEMENTS It's tempting to think of an RV as a tank on wheels, but RVs can be a dangerous place to be during severe weather. RVshare recommends always knowing where you can seek shelter in truly bad conditions (for instance, extreme winds or tornado warnings). Even a minor storm can toss the outdoor furniture, damage awnings, and send a branch crashing down on that shiny windshield. An emergency weather radio is a must in case your phone dies or can't get service. YOU'LL BE BUYING LOTS OF RV ACCESSORIES Sure, RVs can help you streamline and simplify, but a lot of stuff you already own won't cut it in such a small space. You'll probably need stackable or collapsible kitchen accessories to save space, plates that will actually fit in the tiny microwave or cabinets, special sheets to fit non-standard mattresses, camp chairs for sitting outside, and so many other things. Oh, and don't forget the hoses, filters, connectors, cords, adapters, leveling blocks and other things that should come with a new RV, but often don't. RV LIFE CAN BE A SOCIAL MINEFIELD Staying in an RV park? You might be able to look forward to planned events , such as live entertainment, coffee hours, or even ice-cream socials, according to Axle Addict. But you may also find cliques, or even worse, discover you absolutely loathe the people who've pulled in beside you. Even if you do find a great group of fellow RVers, everyone is keeping their own travel schedule, often putting an end to budding friendships before they can flourish. ONE WORD: SEWAGE One of the least-savory parts of RV life is having to think a lot about, well, No. 2. RVs have what's called a black water tank to hold sewage, and as Axle Addict notes, it's only so big   it can hold up to a week's worth of sewage and toilet paper for two people. That means cozying up to a designated dump station fairly frequently. You'll also need to think about keeping the tank in good shape by flushing it regularly, using chemicals that speed the breakdown of waste, and finding special toilet paper that dissolves easily. RV QUALITY CAN BE VERY POOR RV forums are filled with complaints about shoddy workmanship, from poor finishes and loose screws to more serious issues such as excessive vibration and poorly done electrical wiring. RVs are by and large still built one at a time by workers whose skill levels are all over the map. Since the lack of automation makes RVs expensive to build, manufacturers are always looking to cut corners , which can lead to problems down the road   even for the most expensive models. THE LOGISTICS OF RV TRAVEL CAN BE EXHAUSTING It's not as easy as grabbing an atlas and heading out on the open road . There are campground reservations to make . There is the time-consuming process of setting up and breaking down campsites. There's finding the best local grocery store and cheapest gas. There's even worries about plotting the smoothest route between Point A and Point B   can the RV handle those hills or fit under that bridge? Bottom line: You'll be doing a lot more than propping up your feet by the campfire.


At least nine American citizens have died in the Dominican Republic over the past year, according to the US State Department, victims' relatives and the resorts involved. Officials in the Dominican Republican or the US have not said the deaths are connected. Here's everything we know about the nine people who have died -- and what the hotels and their relatives have said. Joseph Allen, 55 Where he's from: New Jersey When and where he died: He died June 13 at the Terra Linda resort in Sosua, Dominican Republic, his sister Jaimie Reed told CNN. The circumstances: His sister said he was not feeling well when he was at the hotel pool with his friends. The friends told his sister he showered and went out that night, despite the fact that he still wasn't feeling well. The next morning, he failed to meet up with friends. When hotel staff checked his room, they found him dead. His son arrived in the Dominican Republic hours after his body was found, his family said. The father and son were planning on spending Father's Day together. Allen's family is seeking to have his body returned to the US to undergo an autopsy back home. Leyla Cox, 53 Where she's from: New York City When and where she died: She died June 10 in her hotel room at the Excellence Resorts in Punta Cana. The circumstances: The hotel gave the cause of death as heart attack, citing a forensics report. CNN has not independently confirmed the contents of the report. Cox's son expressed doubts over the hotel's claims about his mother's cause of death, saying he did not believe she died from "natural causes." "I truly believe if she was anywhere else in the world besides the Dominican Republic she'd be alive right now," Will Cox said. Nathaniel Holmes, 63, and Cynthia Day, 49 Where they're from: Maryland When and where they died. They were found dead on May 30 at the Grand Bahia Principe in La Romana. The circumstances: They missed their scheduled checkout time at the hotel. When hotel employees checked on them, they were dead, police said. Both Holmes and Day had internal bleeding, including in their pancreases, according to Dominican authorities. Holmes had an enlarged heart and cirrhosis of the liver -- both signs of significant pre-existing disease, the Dominican authorities said, and Day also had fluid in her brain. Both also had fluid in their lungs, Attorney General Jean Alain Rodriguez Sanchez's office said in a statement. Authorities said they won't provide more details on the cause of death until toxicology results are completed. Miranda Schaup-Werner, 41 Where she's from: Pennsylvania When and where she died: She died on May 25, shortly after checking into her room at the Bahia Principe resort in La Romana , the same hotel where Holmes and Day died. The circumstances: Schaup-Werner was celebrating a wedding anniversary with her husband, Dan Werner. She suddenly fell ill after having a drink from the minibar, family spokesman Jay McDonald told CNN affiliate WFMZ. Shortly afterward, she collapsed and died. A preliminary autopsy cited by the Attorney General's Office of the Dominican Republic showed that she suffered a heart attack, pulmonary edema and respiratory failure. The death remains under investigation and toxicology results are pending. John Corcoran Where he's from: Unknown Where and when he died: A statement from Corcoran's sister, "Shark Tank" star Barbara Corcoran, said that he died at the end of April in his hotel room. The circumstances: Corcoran's sister said in the statement that he died of apparent natural causes. "He loved and frequently visited the Dominican Republic," his sister said. Robert Wallace, 67 Where he's from: California Where and when he died: Wallace died on April 12 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Punta Cana, relatives told CNN affiliate KTXL . The circumstances: Wallace was in the country with more than two dozen members of his family for a wedding. His son-in-law, Tommy Tickenhoff, told the station that Wallace became sick after drinking scotch from a minibar. David Harrison, 45 Where he's from: Maryland Where and when he died: Harrison's wife, Dawn McCoy, said Harrison died at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Punta Cana in July 2018. The circumstances: Harrison and McCoy were celebrating an anniversary. He said he wasn't feeling well when he returned from a snorkeling excursion, McCoy said. The next morning, he was sweating and unable to get up before he died. The cause of death was listed as a heart attack and pulmonary edema by local authorities. Yvette Monique Sport Where she's from: Pennsylvania Where and when she died: Sport died in June 2018 at the Bahia Principe in Punta Cana, her sister Felecia Nieves told CNN. The circumstances: Sport was on her first vacation in eight years and was traveling with a group of friends. After having drinks with her fiance, Nieves said, Sport took a shower and went to bed. She also had a drink from the minibar. Nieves said her fiance heard her make "a gurgling sound" in her sleep, and the next morning he discovered that she was dead. The US State Department confirmed the death, and the family is still awaiting toxicology reports.


Need more desserts in your life? Hoodline crunched the numbers to find the top dessert hot spots in Cambridge, using both Yelp data and our own secret sauce to produce a ranked list of where to venture next time you're on the hunt. 1. Royal Pastry Shop Topping the list is Royal Pastry Shop . Located at 738 Cambridge St. in Wellington-Harrington, the bakery is the highest-rated dessert spot in Cambridge, boasting 4.5 stars out of 67 reviews on Yelp. 2. Toscanini's Ice Cream Next up is East Cambridge's Toscanini's Ice Cream , situated at 159 First St. With 4.5 stars out of 1,628 reviews on Yelp, the bakery, ice cream and frozen yogurt spot has proven to be a local favorite. 3. L.A. Burdick Handmade Chocolates West Cambridge's L.A. Burdick Handmade Chocolates , located at 52 Brattle St., is another top choice, with Yelpers giving the chocolatier and tea room 4.5 stars out of 1,039 reviews. 4. BerryLine BerryLine , an ice cream and frozen yogurt spot that also offers juices and smoothies in Riverside, is another much-loved go-to, with 4.5 stars out of 586 Yelp reviews. Head over to 3 Arrow St. to see for yourself. 5. Flour Bakery + Café And finally, over in Cambridgeport, check out Flour Bakery + Café , which has earned four stars out of 884 reviews on Yelp. You can find the bakery and coffee spot, which offers pastries, sandwiches and more, at 190 Massachusetts Ave. This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


Denver is done culling geese for the year. That's according to Cyndi Karvaski, a spokesperson for Denver Parks and Recreation, who added that they expect to see more geese migrate to the state this fall and winter   and will re-evaluate their strategy next year. The department recently rounded up geese in Denver parks and slaughtered them in an effort to control the city's goose population, they said. Their meat will go to families in need outside of Denver, according to US Department of Agriculture biologist Kendra Cross. The practice has drawn criticism from local activists, who created a citizens' group called Canada Geese Protection Denver "in response to clandestine raids in which Denver Parks & Rec and the USDA slaughtered thousands of geese in Denver's parks in the middle of the night." RELATED: Denver is rounding up geese to be killed and donated as meat to needy families The group held a rally last weekend to "honor" the Canada geese. Dozens attended the rally, which included a ceremony "to cleanse the kill zone" and a "feather table" displaying feathers of geese that were killed. RELATED: Newly-formed citizen's group holds rally to 'honor geese slain' in Denver parks Canada geese are protected by federal law, but the government can give cities and states permission to control out-of-control populations. Karvaski said US Fish & Wildlife gave USDA a permit to cull up to 2,200 geese. The majority of those geese came from Denver, she said. The city has other strategies for managing the geese population. Those include oiling eggs so they don't hatch and to keep geese from laying more eggs and a "goosinator," which looks like a predator and scares them away. RELATED: Yes, geese are protected by federal law. Here's why Denver can round them up anyway SUGGESTED VIDEOS | Local stories from 9NEWS


Two people were killed in a crash on Baughman Hollow Road in Hempfield Township on Sunday. The crash happened around 8:30 p.m. when the coroner said the 2018 Dodge Charger crossed the center line into the opposite lane of travel, went off the road, hit several trees and overturned. The driver, identified as Marc F. Delissio, 33, of Penn Township, was killed in the crash. Kirstin R. Kerrigan, 22, of Arnona Borough, was a passenger in the car. She was taken to the hospital where she died of her injuries. Another woman who was in the car was last listed in critical condition. The crash is currently under investigation by state police. READ MORE: 2 dead, 1 injured in Hempfield Township crash CHECK OUT WTAE: Stay in the know with the latest Pittsburgh news, weather and sports. Catch all of the day's top stories and more from the team at WTAE Pittsburgh Action News 4.


DOVER, Del. (AP) -- Jimmie Johnson posed for a photo with Hall of Famers Bobby Allison and Richard Petty from an appearance this weekend and wrote the caption "367 and counting." His combined win total has been stuck on that number since June 4, 2017, when Johnson won the last of his 83 NASCAR Cup races. Mired in the worst slump of his career, the seven-time NASCAR champion was back at his favorite track on Sunday, his 11 wins at Dover International Speedway a record. He has to wait another day to go for No. 12 and end his slump. NASCAR will race at noon Monday after rain fell on the mile concrete track all day and the only action came from a Charlie Daniels Band concert. If the devil went down to Delaware, he would have needed a poncho. NASCAR tried to start the race but pulled the cars from the track after a handful of pace laps once the rain came again. The 43-year-old Johnson, who recently ran the Boston Marathon, flashed some speed at Dover when he topped the final practice Saturday with a fast lap of 161.863 mph in the No. 48 Chevrolet. "This is just one of those places that an athlete finds a bond with a facility or a venue," Johnson said. "I don't care if I have three wheels left on this thing, I feel like I still have a shot to win. I just love this place." With Dover celebrating its 50th anniversary season, the race winners will receive a 60-pound Miles the Monster trophy converted from its customary concrete-like finish to metallic gold. Johnson has 11 of the standard-issue trophies: The Hendrick Motorsports driver swept Dover in 2002 and 2009 and won races in 2005, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017. He joined Richard Petty (Martinsville-15, North Wilkesboro-15, Richmond-13, Rockingham-11) and Darrell Waltrip (Bristol-12, Martinsville-11) as drivers who won 11 races at a single track. His 83rd career victory tied him with Cale Yarborough for sixth on the career victory list. Waltrip and Allison are next at 84. "I'm very biased about this race track. I think it's the best one out there," Johnson said. "I think all drivers can appreciate just the challenge that comes with this track, the banking, the speed, the transitions from the straightaways through the corners. I noticed on social media before we got here that drivers and crew members and crew chiefs were all talking about how much they love coming here." He starts 12th and tries to help Hendrick have another stout race day. Chase Elliott got his first win of the season, the first for Chevrolet and the first for Hendrick Motorsports last week at Talladega. Elliott and teammate William Byron make it a 1-2 front row for Hendrick at Dover. The 23-year-old Elliott became the youngest pole winner at Dover when he set a track record of 165.960 mph in qualifying. Dover hasn't held a Monday race since 2007 when Martin Truex Jr. earned his first Cup victory. He has added 19 more wins and the 2017 NASCAR Cup championship over that span. "One of my favorites to come to, for sure," Truex said. "It's called the Monster for a reason. It's mean and it's fast and it's big. It's kind of crazy." He wants a second Monday win at Dover. Johnson aims for No. 12 here. All the team needs at a chance to reach its milestones is a dry concrete track. ------ More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/apf-AutoRacing and https://twitter.com/AP--Sports


Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of midfielder Tanguy Ndombele from Lyon for a club-record fee of €60m plus €10m in bonuses. The 22-year-old has signed a long-term deal in north London, bringing an end to months of speculation that had seen him heavily linked with moves to Manchester United, Juventus and Barcelona, as well as Spurs. ✍ #WelcomeTanguy #COYS ⚪ #THFC pic.twitter.com/P0S9JJyfsV   Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 2, 2019 It's Mauricio Pochettino's side who have smashed their club record transfer fee to get the deal over the line, with a statement on their official website confirming a six-year contract has been signed. The post read: " We are delighted to announce the signing of Tanguy Ndombele from Olympique Lyonnais. The France international central midfielder has signed a contract with the club until 2025. "Ndombele, 22, started his professional career at French side Amiens in Ligue 2, before moving to Olympique Lyonnais on loan in August, 2017, and permanently in the summer of 2018. He made 96 appearances in total for the Ligue 1 side and registered 16 assists." L'Olympique Lyonnais informe du transfert de son milieu de terrain international Tanguy Ndombelé au club de @SpursOfficial pour un montant de 60 M€ auquel pourront s'ajouter des incentives pour un montant maximum de 10 M€. pic.twitter.com/uScRIkIWvK   Olympique Lyonnais (@OL) July 2, 2019 Lyon confirmed the deal had gone through in a statement of their own, offering their thanks to Ndombele for his contributions at the club. The payment for Ndombele's move is thought to include €60m up front, with Lyon going on to receive a further €10m in add-ons - a fee that easily eclipses the £42m paid to Ajax for Davinson Sanchez two years ago. The Frenchman has been a long-term target for Pochettino and chairman Daniel Levy, after impressing in Ligue 1 over the past 18 months for Lyon. He has operated primarily in a defensive minded midfield role, but has shown he is more than capable of providing the goods going forward - contributing seven assists last season, despite failing to find the back of the net. He is expected to compete with Moussa Sissoko and Eric Dier for a place in Tottenham 's midfield, but can expect to walk straight into the Lilywhites starting line-up next season - where he will hope to help Spurs build upon last season's fourth place Premier League finish, as well as finishing runners-up in the Champions League .


Nick Saban may not have a national title ring from the 2018 season. But that's apparently not stopping him from showing off his championship stockpile. 4-star linebacker Demouy Kennedy recently verbally committed to the Crimson Tide and said Wednesday on WNSP 105.5 FM that he did so because of the pitch Saban made to him. Kennedy was previously an Auburn commit and took a visit to Alabama. There, Saban made his pitch with an empty table and a table with rings on it. Via Al.com: "I liked when he said, 'Would you rather gamble on this table (pointing to the ring table) or the other table?' I said, 'I'm gambling on the ring table.'" That's cold. Auburn won a national title after the 2010 season, though that was under Gene Chizik. Since taking over for Chizik, current coach Gus Malzahn has led Auburn to one SEC title. Since Malzahn's team won the SEC in 2013, Saban's teams have won four SEC titles and two national titles. Saban could have piled six rings onto that table from the last five seasons to Malzahn's none. Or he could have simply showed off his six national title rings. Both are pretty convincing arguments. Kennedy, a native of Theodore, Alabama, is listed as the No. 13 outside linebacker in the class of 2020 by Rivals.               Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports. More from Yahoo Sports: Give the Raptors their due, not an asterisk, for winning NBA title Klay Thompson tears ACL; Warriors still intend to re-sign him Did we just see the end of the Golden State dynasty? Longtime Broncos owner Pat Bowlen dies at 75 Related slideshow: Ranking the 10 best college football mascots (provided by For The Win)


German unemployment dropped in May to the lowest level in 24 years, the Federal Labor Office (BA) reported Tuesday. It said the number of jobless people in the country fell to a seasonally adjusted 2.786 million people, reaching levels last recorded in September 1991, a year after German reunification. In raw, unadjusted terms, the jobless total decreased by 81,000 month on month to 2.762 million, the office said. The unemployment rate - measuring the jobless total against the working population as a whole   stood at 6.4 percent in May, unchanged from the previous month and the lowest level since 1990. Strong consumer confidence "Although GDP growth has cooled somewhat of late, developments on the labor market have continued to be positive," BA President Frank-Jürgen Weise said in a statement. Normally, unemployment declines in the spring as the warmer weather allows companies in the building sector and elsewhere to hire more workers. But the current pickup in domestic demand had been magnifying that effect, the labor office said. hg/pad (Reuters, AFP, dpa)


The White House told the House Judiciary Committee in a letter Wednesday that it will not comply with a broad range of the panel's requests and called on it to "discontinue" its inquiry into President Donald Trump. "Congressional investigations are intended to obtain information to aid in evaluating potential legislation, not to harass political opponents or to pursue an unauthorized 'do-over' of exhaustive law enforcement investigations conducted by the Department of Justice," White House counsel Pat Cipollone wrote, citing special counsel Robert Mueller's 448-page report on his probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and whether Trump sought to obstruct the investigation. Cipollone wrote, however, that he was not exerting executive privilege, adding that he would consider more narrow requests from the committee if it can provide the legal support and legislative purpose for such requests. "The appropriate course is for the Committee to discontinue the inquiry," Cipollone wrote to the panel's chairman, Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y. "Unfortunately, it appears that you have already decided to press ahead with a duplicative investigation, including by issuing subpoenas, to replow the same ground the Special Counsel has already covered." In early March, Nadler requested information from 81 individuals or entities connected to the president as part of a broad investigation into whether Trump abused his power or acted corruptly. Cipollone wrote his letter in response to Nadler's March letter requesting documents from the White House as part of that broad push. Responding to the White House on Wednesday, Nadler told reporters that the claims in the letter were "outrageous," "ridiculous," "preposterous," and "un-American," and vowed that his panel would continue its investigations. "Taking that position that a president cannot be indicted, they are saying only Congress can hold a president accountable, and now they're saying that Congress can't, which means nobody can, which means the president is above the law," Nadler said. "And that is an un-American, frankly un-American claim." "I don't know whether they're trying to taunt us towards an impeachment or anything else," Nadler added. "All I know is that they have made a preposterous claim." Cipollone homed in on a rationale that the White House and Trump's business have made elsewhere: that Congress cannot conduct such oversight of the president unless it has a specific legislative purpose. In his letter, Cipollone wrote that "it appears that the committee's inquiry is designed not to further a legitimate legislative purpose, but rather to conduct a pseudo law enforcement investigation on matters that were already the subject of the Special Counsel's long-running investigation and are outside the constitutional authority of the legislative branch." "The only purpose for this duplication seems to be harassing and seeking to embarrass political opponents after an exhaustive two-year investigation by the Department of Justice did not reach the conclusion that some members of the Committee apparently would have preferred," he continued. "That, of course, is not a permissible purpose for demanding confidential information from the Executive." Congress has broad oversight powers that have been affirmed by the Supreme Court. In McGrain v. Daugherty, the court ruled the "potential" for legislation to come about as a result of a congressional inquiry was sufficient rationale to launch one. And in Eastland v. United States Servicemen's Fund, the court ruled, "To be a valid legislative inquiry there need be no predictable end result." According to the Congressional Research Service , Congress generally enjoys "extremely broad" power "to obtain information, including classified and/or confidential information." "While there is no express provision of the Constitution or specific statute authorizing the conduct of congressional oversight or investigations, the Supreme Court has firmly established that such power is essential to the legislative function as to be implied from the general vesting of legislative powers in Congress," CRS wrote. Despite that broad interpretation of legislative purpose, "its scope is not without limits," the agency added. "Courts have held that a committee lacks legislative purpose if it appears to be conducting a legislative trial rather than an investigation to assist in performing its legislative function." And although "'there is no congressional power to expose for the sake of exposure,' 'so long as Congress acts in pursuance of its constitutional power, the Judiciary lacks authority to intervene on the basis of the motives which spurred the exercise of that power,'" CRS said. A federal judge expressed skepticism at a hearing Tuesday about Trump's efforts to block Congress from getting some of his financial records. Amit Mehta, a U.S. District Court judge in Washington, told Trump lawyer William Consovoy that he would have trouble ruling that Congress did not have the constitutional authority to obtain Trump's taxes due to a lack of explicit legislative purpose because of prior Supreme Court rulings. In a conference call with reporters Wednesday after Cipollone sent his letter, a senior administration official said Nadler should "rethink this oversight or investigation," accusing him of "brushing aside the conclusions of the Department of Justice, and doing so in favor of political theatre." Democrats argued that Mueller's report made clear that it was up to Congress to further any inquiry into whether the president obstructed justice; Mueller wrote in his report that he neither concluded Trump had committed a crime nor exonerated him of having done so. The senior administration official said Nadler "has to do a better job of setting out a legitimate legislative purpose for what" he's doing," and called on him to make clear "some type of public law he intends to introduce" alongside his committee's investigation. When asked, the official said Trump was not "above the law." "But he also is not below the law," the official said. "He has rights and privileges as the rest of us do." And as president, the official said, Trump "has a couple more rights that the rest of us don't have."


Red Hook was a ghost town when Greg O'Connell started buying property in the Brooklyn neighborhood more than four decades ago. "You could drive down Van Brunt Street on a Sunday on a bike with no clothes on and it wouldn't make any difference," said O'Connell, a former New York detective whose accent betrays his Queens roots. But O'Connell saw opportunity in the abandoned Civil War-era warehouses in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty and wasn't intimidated by the lawlessness and drug use. He acquired properties for next to nothing "Nobody wanted them," he said and now owns about 1.3 million square feet of buildings and another 385,000 square feet of undeveloped land in Brooklyn, mostly in Red Hook. O'Connell, 77, said he doesn't track the value of his holdings, but Bloomberg estimates they're worth at least $400 million. His success in helping to revive one of New York's grittiest neighborhoods has also created new challenges for the area, as well as for the one-time narcotics cop. While O'Connell attempts to balance the scales by subsidizing some rents, many residents are being priced out of an area that was briefly an affordable enclave in an increasingly expensive city. What's more, the worry or the hope, depending on one's point of view is that prices will only go up from here, thanks to recent tax changes. Red Hook is already on the front lines of hipster-led gentrification, and once-deserted Van Brunt Street is its main drag. On a recent sunny day, a bearded man in Ray-Bans walked with a baby in a Keith Haring print carrier past a record shop toward the Tesla dealership. Young couples with Birkenstocks and iced coffees strolled past art galleries and apartments with seven-figure price tags. "Not in my wildest dreams would I ever believe that there was such a thing as a million-dollar condo, but they sell 'em" in Red Hook, said O'Connell, who paid $4,000 in 1976 for his three-story home on Warren Street, which is now worth more than $1.2 million. He may soon see more of them. The increasingly affluent waterfront neighborhood also home to the city's second-largest public housing project was recently named an opportunity zone as part of the 2017 federal tax overhaul. According to Urban Institute senior fellow Brett Theodos, this will attract more development and probably inflate property prices. O'Connell, who said he was unaware of the opportunity zone designation, worries it may make it harder to continue his way of doing business. While he rents to companies like Fairway Market and Ample Hills Creamery, many of his tenants are nonprofits that get the space for free or below-market rates. And if land values and taxes continue to rise, he frets he'll have to ask them to chip in more. "It's something I really don't like," said O'Connell, known for wearing overalls while driving around the neighborhood in his pickup truck. "The nonprofits do so much good for the neighborhood." That philosophy is what separates him from the usual New York builder, according to the Center for an Urban Future 's Jonathan Bowles, who has described O'Connell as a "socialist developer." "He's a developer, but he doesn't look like Donald Trump," said Bowles, the think tank's executive director. "He really had a vision. It wasn't just the profit-at-all-costs vision." O'Connell grew up across the borough line in Cambria Heights, Queens, the son of a teacher and a police officer. Much of his extended family almost all of whom were also public servants lived there and had a big effect in shaping his views. One lesson from his father particularly affected him. When O'Connell was a boy, his dad would sometimes bring him to work. On one occasion, they passed a drunken man lying on the sidewalk holding a bottle of Thunderbird wine. O'Connell's dad turned to him and said, "Remember to treat the judge on the stand and the poor unfortunate on the street the same way." "I had very good examples," O'Connell said. "It was valuable to give back to your community in any way you could, so I guess that has been with me." After graduating from State University of New York, Geneseo in 1964, O'Connell became a substitute teacher during the day and a cop at night. He started on the tactical patrol force, working in high crime areas, mostly in Manhattan. Some of his time was spent patrolling the Upper West Side, where an urban renewal project sparked his interest in real estate. "I began to look at the brownstones and the details that were there and the old world craftsmanship," he said. "They were beautiful buildings, each one a little different." O'Connell couldn't afford Manhattan, so he looked to Brooklyn. In 1967, with a loan from his parents, he bought his first property on Henry Street in Cobble Hill for $22,000. It's now worth $2.5 million. He continued buying throughout Brooklyn while working for the police, becoming a narcotics detective and then a precinct detective before retiring in 1981 to focus on real estate. His biggest score was in 1992, when he bought several abandoned warehouses from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for $450,000. Those buildings are now worth more than $170 million. O'Connell said his goals in Red Hook were to maintain the neighborhood's historical significance, attract small businesses to create jobs for local residents and open the waterfront to the public. Artists now live and work in the waterfront warehouses, and an old factory building is home to the city's largest ice cream production facility. The sounds of fog horns, power tools and trucks backing up mingle with the scent of burning meat from Hometown Bar-B-Que on Van Brunt Street. The Fairway sits in an old coffee warehouse, which is also home to nonprofits and luxury apartments with views of Lower Manhattan. A few blocks off the bustling waterfront sits an enormous public housing project: Red Hook Houses. While much of the neighborhood has been transformed, that area is largely unchanged, said Jill Eisenhard, founder of the Red Hook Initiative , one of the nonprofits that rents from the O'Connell Organization at a discount. Two Red Hook census tracts are designated as opportunity zones : one on the waterfront, the other comprising the projects. While the program is designed to benefit low-income communities, many states awarded the designation to areas that were already gentrifying, with the hope of attracting investors to boost them further. New York State, advised by the New York City's economic development corporation, picked several waterfront zones, including the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City in Queens. Eisenhard said she's worried all the investment will go to the waterfront, speeding up gentrification there, with little to no benefit for Red Hook House residents. "It's just going to increase the divide," she said. Eisenhard imagines multimillion-dollar condos sprouting up across the street from housing authority buildings that "are literally crumbling or on the brink of being uninhabitable." O'Connell said he shares her concerns. A doorman at one of O'Connell's buildings lives in the Red Hook Houses, and told the developer his family couldn't cook Easter dinner because the gas wasn't working. "It's a shame," said O'Connell, who has donated land to the Fifth Avenue Committee to build affordable housing. "Let's take what's existing and build on that and improve on that before you start expanding." O'Connell said he's no longer buying properties in Red Hook because he can't afford the development costs. Now "basically retired," he splits his time between Brooklyn and a home in upstate New York, where he's also bought dozens of properties near Geneseo to help other communities "take back their Main Street." One of his sons, Gregory, now runs the O'Connell Organization from a repurposed warehouse on Red Hook's waterfront. As he passes along the business, O'Connell said he hopes his son will have his same sense of duty to the community. "Most people haven't learned that not everything is dollars and cents," he said. "I'm hoping that my children understand that, and I think they do."  With assistance from Caleb Melby and Noah Buhayar. To contact the authors of this story: Sophie Alexander in New York at salexander82@bloomberg.netTom Maloney in New York at tmaloney38@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Pierre Paulden at ppaulden@bloomberg.net, Steven Crabill For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com ©2019 Bloomberg L.P.


The dust has settled. What was the wildest free agency summer in NBA history is winding down, and while there are a few questions still out there   what uniform will Chris Paul be in at the end of next season?   for the most part teams are picking up the 14th and 15th guys on the bench, plus handing out two-way contracts. The rosters are basically set. Yet there are still some veteran free agents of note available out there. Guys who could help teams. These players may have to wait into training camp or even the start of the season to find a spot, once roster holes become glaring or injuries send a team scrambling. Others may choose to play overseas. But here are seven veterans still on the market who could help a team. 1) Jeremy Lin It's been an emotional offseason for Lin , one where he has gone from the high of being on a championship team to not finding a home for next season. While he fell out of Toronto's playoff rotation last May and June   and that seems to be what front offices remember   he played solidly as a backup point guard for the Raptors and Hawks and averaged 9.6 points and 3.1 assists per game overall last season. Lin knows how to run a team, can get to the rim, can hit the three enough you have to respect it, and is a better defender now than his reputation. Lin has interest from CSKA Moscow but it's unclear what direction he will go. 2) Iman Shumpert Wing defense is in demand around the NBA, and while Shumpert is not near the defender he once was he can still provide some solid defense at a position of need. Shumpert also shot 34.8 percent last season overall from three (that time was split between Sacramento and Houston). He played in eight of the Rockets' playoff games last season and was respectable in those. If a team is looking for a respectable role player on the wing, Shumpert can be that guy. 3) Jamal Crawford Need buckets off the bench? Crawford, at age 39, can still get them. The three-time Sixth Man of the Year has slowed in recent years, but he still averaged 7.9 points per game off the bench and lit it up for the depleted Suns at the very tail end of last season. He's also improved the playmaking aspect of his game. For a team that needs bench scoring, look no further. 4) Vince Carter Vince Carter's role has evolved from high-flying wing to stretch four   he played 56 percent of his minutes as a power forward last season, shooting 38.9 percent from three. He's also a respected leader in the locker room. Fans and fellow players love him, and a few times a season he can jump in the hot tub time machine and remind everybody why he is one of the all-time great dunkers the league has seen. Carter could help several teams off the bench. 5) J.R. Smith Cleveland waived Smith not because they couldn't use his basketball skills, but to save a lot of money. Smith will turn 34 before next season starts and his skills are in decline, he shot just 30.8 percent from three last season. In the right situation (on a likely contender) Smith could play a role off the bench. Teams will have to live with the occasional mental vacation during games (and teams may not want to play him clutch minutes in a Finals game ). 6) Jonas Jerebko Jerebko struggled for the Warriors in the playoffs, when injuries forced him into an outsized role, but during the regular season he was a solid reserve for Golden State. Jerebko averaged more than 16 minutes a game for the Warriors last season (73 games), shot 36.7 percent from three, and averaged 6.3 points per game. Jerebko could help a team looking for a stretch four off the bench. 7) Thabo Sefolosha He has evolved into more of a switchable, defensive-minded forward who can play the three or the four off the bench for teams and give them solid minutes. He shot 46.3 percent from three last season in Utah, and while that is probably not sustainable he is a good floor spacer on offense (who does not do much else). There are certainly teams Sofolosha could help off the bench.


The Magic are exercising their 2019-20 team option to retain Wesley Iwundu , reports Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports ( via Twitter ). The move will lock in Iwundu's salary for next season, which is worth $1,618,520, per Basketball Insiders . Iwundu, the 33rd overall pick in the 2017 draft, played a regular rotation role for Orlando in his second NBA season, averaging 5.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG, and 1.1 APG with a .412/.367/.816 shooting line in 68 games (18.1 MPG). The 24-year-old small forward is also one of Orlando's top perimeter defenders. The team's defensive rating with Iwundu on the court last season was 102.4, compared to 107.5 when he sat. The Magic even managed to post a 93.8 defensive rating during Iwundu's 60 postseason minutes vs. the eventual-champion Raptors. With his option exercised, Iwundu is now on track to reach restricted free agency during the summer of 2020.


Earlier this year, Kendall Jenner announced a partnership with acne-targeting skin-care brand Proactiv. At first, fans were surprised. After all, Jenner often looks flawless on the red carpet. Could acne really be affecting one of the world's most famous people in such a meaningful way? In a new interview, Jenner explained exactly when she began to struggle with acne and what role it played in her life. As Jenner told Bustle , she started getting breakouts as a freshman in high school, only getting them under control when she went on birth control at age 16. Her skin stayed clear   until she stopped taking birth control in 2018. "I experienced [acne] in two different times in my life. One being high school, when all you're trying to do is be accepted and be part of something, and I wouldn't even look people in the eyes when I would speak to them," she said. "The next time it came around, I was supposed to be this model who has everything together. That's never the case, first of all   good skin or not. But the whole world is looking at you, and it's like a magnifying glass on everything that you do and what happens to you." Now, one year into using Proactiv, Jenner's acne is under control. In fact, Proactiv has worked so well that Jenner admitted she hasn't yet tried Kylie Skin , her sister's new skin-care line. You know the old saying: If a skin-care routine ain't broke, don't try your famous sister's new products. Jenner also has milia , which are tiny white facial cysts filled with keratin. She even woke up on her first day of high school with her forehead covered in the unpoppable white bumps. "And then it just grew from there," she said. "It started to happen all over my face   milia and also gnarly zits." It's worth noting that a dermatologist should be the one to extract milia, although Jenner told Bustle that she's learned how to do so herself. Overall, she hopes that the campaign is a beacon of acne positivity . "I love that I can be vulnerable in this situation and show people that I'm human, too," Jenner said. "And I hopefully can set a sort of example that it's OK, and everyone deals with stuff like this." (VIDEO) 9 small but impactful health habits to lock down in your 20s (Courtesy: Self)


As you've stood in a crowded and confusing mass of people surging toward an airline boarding gate, you've probably thought, "There's got to be a better way to do this." Several domestic airlines agree. They've introduced new boarding procedures that they claim streamline and speed up the often-frustrating process of lining up and getting onto a flight, from rearranging boarding groups to employing new biometric systems. "Many of the airline boarding processes don't work and are a disorganized mess," says airline analyst George Hobica. "Airlines have an incentive to make them more efficient because they can turn around their flights sooner and keep passengers happier." Consider United Airlines. In the fall, the carrier debuted new boarding procedures at more than 1,000 gates internationally after receiving consistent feedback from customers who found boarding to be a stressful experience. Maria Walter, the airline's managing director of customer insights and innovation, said that its fliers would often line up to get on the plane as soon as they arrived at their gate, sometimes an hour before boarding began. "They would feel hostage to the line," she says. The airline previously had five boarding lanes but now has two color-coded ones. Passengers in Group 1 board through the blue lane, while those in Group 2 board through the green lane. Those in Groups 3 to 5 board through the green lane when it's their turn. Walter says that passengers in Groups 1 and 2 tend to be frequent fliers with the airline and may have elite status, while those in Groups 3 to 5 are occasional fliers and prefer to be seated at the gate longer. In addition to shrinking its lanes, United has installed new display screens at its gates that indicate in large text which groups are currently boarding. Although Walter declined to give exact numbers, she says that the new procedures have made boarding faster. The airline's customer satisfaction metrics have also improved, she says. Zach Honig, editor at large of the travel site the Points Guy, is a frequent United flier who usually boards in Group 1 and says that he didn't see a noticeable difference after the new process was introduced. "There is still that rush at the gate," he says. It might seem most logical for airlines to board window-seat passengers first, followed by those who have middle and aisle seats, but Honig said that he has yet to see such a process in his regular travels on a number of airlines. "Boarding groups are typically based on class of service, what kind of fare they purchased or someone's elite status, but that may not always be the most organized way to get passengers on board," he says. Based on the boarding process it introduced in January, Delta Air Lines seems to disagree: Instead of boarding by a designated zone based on what part of the plane they will be sitting in, customers now board based on the type of fare they purchased (the range goes from basic economy to Delta One, the airline's name for its business class) or their frequent-flier status. There are eight groups in all, and each group is designated by color. Delta One customers and those with the highest frequent-flier status, for example, are assigned purple, while basic economy customers are assigned navy blue. According to a Delta spokesperson, the goal of the new process is twofold: It's meant to make it clearer to customers when they need to board and thus help ease congestion in the gate area. Alaska Airlines tinkered with its boarding process last summer. Fliers are assigned to one of six groups: First Class, A, B, C, D or E. This last group was added in early 2019 and is for those who purchased nonrefundable fares and who can't pick their seats in advance. With the new process, passengers don't need to approach the gate until their group is called, and according to a blog post on the company's site, it's supposed to clarify who needs to board and when. New display screens at gates, along with larger fonts on boarding passes that display a passenger's assigned group, are also designed to help. Some airlines are using biometric identification to speed up their boarding. Customers who choose to try the technology don't need a boarding pass   a camera captures their image at the boarding gate instead, and they board once their identity is confirmed. While the practice has drawn objections from civil libertarians concerned that passenger images could be used for surveillance in violation of privacy rights or could be hacked , airlines seem enthusiastic about it. Delta, in partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and the Transportation Security Administration, debuted the country's first biometric terminal in Atlanta's Terminal F late last year. Customers flying direct through the terminal to an international destination on Delta, Aeromexico, Air France, KLM or Virgin Atlantic Airways can use the facial-recognition technology to board a plane. The process saves two seconds for each customer, for a total of nine minutes for a widebody aircraft, according to the airline. Kathryn Steele, a spokeswoman for Delta, said that nearly all of the 25,000 customers who travel through Terminal F each week choose this optional process   only 2 percent opt out. JetBlue started using biometric boarding in 2017 at Boston's Logan International Airport and has since expanded it to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Some international carriers are also using biometric identification to board flights departing from the United States. It's an option for British Airways customers traveling to Britain from Orlando, Los Angeles and JFK, for one. The airline says that the technology has halved its boarding time. In Orlando, for example, 240 customers can now board in 10 minutes instead of 20. According to Chip Garner, a spokesman for the airline, BA operates two flights a day from Orlando to London Gatwick, and up to 4,000 customers are boarded using biometrics every week. (The airline declined to be more specific.) The Australian carrier Qantas began testing biometric boarding last April at Los Angeles International Airport for its daily flights to Sydney and Melbourne on the Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger plane. A spokesperson for the airline says that the technology has helped cut the boarding time for more than 430 passengers from 40 minutes to 30 minutes. While new boarding groups and biometric identification may sound like promising solutions to lessen the hassles of boarding, some experts are skeptical. Larry Studdiford, a security consultant for airports and the founder of Studdiford Technical Solutions, a security firm in Alexandria , Va. , said that he doubts they save fliers and airlines time. "You may get on the jet bridge faster, but you're still going to have the bottleneck of people actually getting on the plane, finding their seats and putting their bags away," he said. "How much faster can you do that?" Paul Hudson, the president of FlyersRights.org, a nonprofit organization that supports the rights of airline passengers, says that the new boarding changes are slight. "You basically see a proliferation of boarding groups," he says. Still, compared with the other hassles of flying today, such as delays and getting bumped, boarding is a minimal source of stress, according to Hudson. "Boarding isn't something we get a lot of complaints about," he says. "There are bigger issues out there that come with air travel." travel@washpost.com Vora is a writer based in New York. Follow her on Instagram: @shivanivora78 .


n case you haven't noticed, the Tigers are rebuilding. General manager Al Avila has spoken often in the past about the need to build toward a better tomorrow, and he was frank during Spring Training about Nicholas Castellanos ' trade candidacy. MLB.com's Jon Morosi wrote today that the Tigers are willing to listen on veteran players, but that's already a well-known fact   not exactly a new revelation. The greater question is: just how many appealing pieces do the Tigers even possess? Morosi lists the usual suspects, citing Castellanos, Matthew Boyd and Shane Greene as potentially movable assets. Beyond that trio, appeal in Detroit veterans will be limited. Most of the one-year signees the Tigers added over the winter have minimal value because they're on the injured list and/or performing poorly. Josh Harrison underwent hamstring surgery this month and didn't hit when healthy. His double-play partner, Jordy Mercer , is on the IL for the second time and has turned in the worst offensive rates of his career in the 19 games he's managed to play. Tyson Ross is out indefinitely. Matt Moore looked great for two starts … before he had season-ending knee surgery. Jordan Zimmermann 's contract has looked impossible to move since 2016, and now he has a UCL injury (though he's trying to pitch through it). Miguel Cabrera ? No one was touching that contract even before the Tigers announced the "chronic changes" to his knee that will impact the rest of Cabrera's career. Aside from Greene, the bullpen's numbers aren't especially impressive. Detroit does have a pair of somewhat interesting, relatively young options it could market in addition to Boyd, Greene and Castellanos, although neither is anywhere near free agency. Super-utilityman Niko Goodrum has played all four infield positions and all three outfield slots since the Tigers picked him up as a minor league free agent in the 2017-18 offseason. In 740 plate appearances as a Tiger, Goodrum has batted .241/.315/.419 with 22 homers and 16 steals. This season, his average exit velocity (89.3 mph) is in the 77th percentile, while his average sprint speed is in the 93rd percentile of MLB players, per Statcast. In some respects, he's like Detroit's version of Marwin Gonzalez   albeit with a lesser overall track record. He's controlled for four years beyond 2019, so there's no urgency to move him, but teams looking for a versatile upgrade on the bench could look at Goodrum as an intriguing possibility. In the outfield, Detroit has seen JaCoby Jones explode at the plate recently. On May 4, the 27-year-old Jones' OPS sat at a lowly .413. In 127 plate appearances since that time, he's mashed to the tune of a .315/.389/.595 slash with 16 extra-base hits (eight doubles, a triple, seven homers) and a perfect 5-for-5 in the stolen base column. He's had his share of BABIP luck, but Jones' K/BB numbers have improved over that stretch as well. Contact seems like it'll always be an issue, but there's a fairly interesting blend of power and speed with Jones. Stastcast puts him in elite company (93rd percentile) both in hard-hit rate and average exit velocity. He's in the 81st percentile in terms of sprint speed. Defensively, Jones was excellent in 2018 (10 DRS, +6.1 UZR, 7 Outs Above Average), but those same metrics have soured on his center field glovework in 2019 (-7, -6.4 and 0, respectively). Like Goodrum, he's controllable through 2023. I don't know that teams are going to line up to acquire Jones based on what amounts to five weeks of strong offensive output, but he's at least worth monitoring over the next several weeks. There aren't going to be too many appealing center fielders on the trade market, after all. As for the three most logical chips   Boyd, Greene and Castellanos   they'll face varying levels of interest. Boyd is appealing to any club within a stone's throw of contending, as he's in the midst of what looks to be a legitimate breakout season. The 28-year-old is controlled through 2022 and has thus far pitched to a 3.08 ERA with 11.2 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9. Fielding-independent metrics are buying him as a breakout star (2.91 FIP, 3.20 SIERA), and only five qualified pitchers have a better K-BB% than Boyd's 26.2 percent mark. The cost to acquire him should be enormous, given the time he's still controlled. Greene won't carry as high a price tag, given that he's controlled through 2020. But he's sitting on a 1.00 ERA with career-best marks in strikeout percentage (27.4 percent), walk percentage (6.6 percent) and ground-ball rate (52.2 percent). He's unequivocally elevated his stock in 2019, making the Tigers' decision not to move him at last year's deadline look wise. Like Boyd, Greene is appealing to any contender. Castellanos, meanwhile, faces a less robust market. Defensive metrics suggest he's improved in right field but is still below average there. More concerning is the fact that Castellanos hasn't hit that much in 2019. His 21 doubles lead the AL, but his overall .263/.315/.454 slash is roughly league average, per OPS+ and wRC+, and he's on pace for fewer home runs than last year's 23. Casteallnos has seen his line-drive rate dip by more than seven percent, and his hard-hit rate has fallen off a bit as well. Corner bat rentals never yield all that great a return these days   as the Tigers learned in trading J.D. Martinez two years ago   and Castellanos' downturn in production won't help the team's cause. There's certainly time for a rebound, but it's tough to see Castellanos fetching a sizable return even if his bat wakes up in the next few weeks. The general expectation is that the Tigers will continue their tear-down this summer, but the pieces they have to market, in the end, aren't that plentiful. Greene seems like a lock to be moved for a decent haul, and because Castellanos isn't playing like a qualifying offer candidate, it's probably best to move him even if the return is modest. But the Tigers' best asset, Boyd, is controlled for three more years and the only other somewhat interesting pieces are controlled even longer. If the team doesn't move Boyd between now and July 31, the summer market might not boost the Tigers' farm as much as fans would hope.