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You’ve likely heard the Serenity Prayer − but not its backstory

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I’m not sure when I first encountered the Serenity Prayer, or when it first occurred to me to ask who wrote it. For much of my life it never occurred to me that prayers were the kind of things that people actually wrote down, especially something as popular as the Serenity Prayer: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot ...Read more

I study refugees, and here are the facts on the history and impact of refugee resettlement in the US

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Refugees haven’t been welcome in the United States since the first day of President Donald Trump’s second term, when he signed an executive order suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for 90 days. Despite a February 2025 federal court order to resume refugee resettlement, the administration has said that won’t be happening any ...Read more

Putin aide pushes back against Ukraine truce before US talks

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A top aide to President Vladimir Putin said Russia wanted a long-term solution and not a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine as U.S. officials arrived in Moscow for talks.

The comments from Yuri Ushakov reported by the Interfax news agency on Thursday came as Russia said it expelled Ukrainian troops from a key town in the Kursk region, bringing ...Read more

Despite the stress of the fires, most LA County residents don't plan to leave, poll finds

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LOS ANGELES — Despite widespread stress, smoke inhalation and other disruptions caused by the January wildfires, a majority of Los Angeles County residents are happy with their lives here and don't plan to leave.

Fewer than 1 in 4 L.A. County residents are considering moving out of the area because of the fires, and fewer than 1 in 10 ...Read more

Iran says Trump must stop pressure and threats if he wants nuclear talks

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Iran’s foreign minister said his country will enter direct U.S. talks if Washington ends “pressure and threats” against the Islamic Republic, the latest in a series of exchanges with President Donald Trump on the prospects of a fresh nuclear deal.

Abbas Araghchi, a former negotiator on Iran’s long-running stand-off with Western ...Read more

'Beyond creepy': Someone in Los Angeles is killing dozens of crows, neighbors say

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LOS ANGELES — A group of Westchester residents say they are freaked out as someone keeps shooting crows in a neighborhood elm tree. Dozens have died, and they fear that if the crow killer isn't stopped, a person or pet could end up harmed.

On Saturday morning, the Los Angeles Police Department responded to a call of animal cruelty in the 8300...Read more

Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Fentanyl dealer gets 6 years for death of SoCal teen. Parents say it's not enough

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LOS ANGELES — Daisy Markley found her child's limp body slumped over at the end of their bed. One pill was all it took to kill Jax Markley, a transgender teen from Santa Clarita who overdosed on fentanyl just months after graduating from high school.

"I'll never forget the sound of my wife's scream calling me upstairs," Matt Markley said, ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Thought inflation was bad? Health insurance premiums are rising even faster

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Kirk Vartan pays more than $2,000 a month for a high-deductible health insurance plan from Blue Shield on Covered California, the state’s Affordable Care Act marketplace. He could have selected a cheaper plan from a different provider, but he wanted one that includes his wife’s doctor.

“It’s for the two of us, and we’re not sick,” ...Read more

Federico Parra/AFP/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/TNS

Illegal mining reaches Venezuela's famed Angel Falls, threatens treasured national park

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Deep in the Amazon, Canaima National Park in Venezuela is a green wonderland. Home to Angel Falls, the tallest uninterrupted waterfall in the world at more than 3,200 feet, it serves as a source of national pride, a showcase of the country’s uniqueness and natural beauty, the Venezuelan equivalent of the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Niagara ...Read more

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America/TNS

As Democrats face leadership vacuum, Republicans look for new boogeymen

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WASHINGTON — The “squad” has shrunk.

Nancy Pelosi, at 84, is approaching the twilight of her long political career.

And House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries? More than 40% of Americans have no idea who he is, a recent Pew Research Center poll found.

What Republicans need is a new boogeyman. Gone are the days when the party could drag ...Read more

DREAMSTIME/TNS

Red flag laws are increasingly being used to protect gun owners in crisis

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NOTE : If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting “988.”

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Adriana Pentz’s brother could be alive today.

In 2017, Luc-John Pentz was 30 years old and starting to struggle, burdened by life’s stressors and trying to cope by leaning heavily on...Read more

Christina House/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Smoke detectors in the sky: Will wildfire affect bird behavior?

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LOS ANGELES -- As thick clouds of smoke rolled across Los Angeles in early January, Allison Shultz opened a freezer and took out a stash of pristine white pigeon feathers.

The ornithology curator at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County placed handfuls of feathers between two small screens and clipped them together with zip ties. She...Read more

Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images AsiaPac/TNS

MRNA vaccines, once a Trump boast, now face attacks from some in GOP

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Researchers racing to develop bird flu vaccines for humans have turned to a cutting-edge technology that enabled the rapid development of lifesaving covid shots.

There’s a catch: The mRNA technology faces growing doubts among Republicans, including people around President Donald Trump.

Legislation aimed to ban or limit mRNA vaccines was ...Read more

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America/TNS

Governors to laid-off federal workers: We'll hire you

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Among the thousands of federal workers who’ve been forced out or taken buyouts in the past month, surely some would be perfect fits for the many vacancies in Pennsylvania’s state government.

That, at least, is the thinking of Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, who recently directed his state to not only offer aid to laid-off constituents, but ...Read more

Can the Trump administration legally deport Palestinian rights advocate Mahmoud Khalil? 3 things to know about green card holders’ rights

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the government will deport lawful permanent residents who support Hamas and came to the U.S. as students with an intent “to rile up all kinds of anti-Jewish student, antisemitic activities,” referencing the Palestinian rights protests at universities in 2024.

“And if you end up having...Read more

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images North America/TNS

China says US owes 'big thank you' on fentanyl, urges talks

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China said it has forcefully cracked down on the fentanyl trade and condemned President Donald Trump’s tariffs, as the world’s two largest economies remain at odds over the conditions for any talks to cool tensions.

Officials from China’s Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Public Security said in a briefing on Wednesday the country has ...Read more

Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald/TNS

Boston Public Schools failing to improve academic outcomes despite state intervention, watchdog report finds

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Boston Public Schools has not made significant improvements for student outcomes despite an agreement made with the state five years ago, the nonprofit organization Boston Policy Institute found in a new report.

“The study finds that while the intervention prompted BPS to address long-standing operational and administrative deficiencies, it ...Read more

Connecticut father reconnects with daughter kidnapped as toddler in 1999

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A Connecticut father is being reunited with his daughter, who was kidnapped by his ex-wife and taken to Mexico in 1999.

“It was a moment of joy,” Carlos Reyes-Couvertier said at a Wednesday press conference in New Haven when asked how he felt after authorities told him they’d located Andrea Michelle Reyes after more than 25 years.

He ...Read more

Yuri Gripas/Abaca Press/TNS

New rule says undocumented migrants, many Canadians in U.S. will be required to register

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The Department of Homeland Security issued a notice on Wednesday requiring millions of immigrants to register their presence in the United States with the federal government or face stiff penalties.

Those who must register include people who entered the U.S. without being processed by immigration authorities as well as Canadians without ...Read more

Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post/TNS

Death toll in Columbine High School shooting increases nearly 26 years later with coroner's ruling

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DENVER — Nearly 26 years later, the Columbine High School massacre officially claimed another life.

The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office, in a newly completed autopsy report, ruled last month’s death of Anne Marie Hochhalter, a 43-year-old paralyzed in the 1999 shooting, was a homicide.

Hochhalter died of sepsis, with complications from...Read more