Assad exit puts US at perilous crossroads in SyriaBy ANNE D’INNOCENZIO The Associated Press — The Container Store has filed for bankruptcy protection as the storage and organizational goods retailer with roots dating back to the 1970s grapples with mounting losses and cash flow shortages. The Texas company has faced increasing competition from retailers like Target and Walmart at the same time that demand for its goods is under strain in a rough housing market, where soaring prices and elevated mortgage rates have stunted sales. Under Chapter 11 protection, The Container Store will continue to operate while it restructures. The chain has stores in Costa Mesa and seven other locations throughout Southern California. The company said Sunday that it had filed for bankruptcy protection in Texas. The filing arrives two weeks after the trading of company shares was suspended by the New York Stock Exchange. The Container Store Group Inc. failed to maintain an average market capitalization of at least $15 million in accordance with NYSE rules. Last month, The Container Store said that it was in advanced discussions with lenders to provide additional capital as it aimed to turn around sagging earnings and sales, according to a regulatory filing. The company has struggled to raise cash, and last month an agreement with the owner of Bed Bath & Beyond, Overstock and Zulily that would have come with a $40 million cash infusion fell apart. The Container Store said in a regulatory filing that it did not believe that it could match the financing requirements of the partnership with Beyond Inc. The Container Store was founded in 1978 by Garrett Boone, Kip Tindell and investor John Mullen, who opened the doors of The Container Store’s first location in Dallas, according to the company. Neither of the men, Boone with a master’s degree in history and Tindell who was an English major, expected a career in retail. Yet both were driven by the idea of creating a store devoted entirely to storage. The chain had its skeptics when Boon and Tindell opened their first 1,600-square-foot location. Yet the chain expanded to more than 100 stores ranging from 12,000 to 20,000 square feet, according to the company. In 1999, The Container Store purchased one of its vendors, Elfa International. In 2021, it acquired Chicago’s Closet Works and launched its premium, wood-based line Preston shortly thereafter. In its most recent quarter the company reported losses of $16 million, and comparable store sales, a good barometer of a retailer’s health, dropped 12.5%.LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani is keeping elite company. The Japanese superstar caps 2024 by winning The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the third time, tying him with basketball great Michael Jordan. He trails only four-time winners Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods and LeBron James. "I'm very honored," Ohtani said through translator Matt Hidaka in an exclusive interview with the AP. "Obviously all the hard work has paid off. Maybe next year, I'll get the award again." In balloting by 74 sports journalists from the AP and its members, Ohtani received 48 votes. He previously won the award in 2023 and 2021, when he was with the Angels. "Growing up in Japan, I did follow Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods," he said. "I would see their accolades and how they were successful in the United States." The AP honor has been given out since 1931. Golfer Babe Didrikson won six times, the most by a man or woman. Swimmer Léon Marchand of France, who won four gold medals at the Paris Olympics, was second with 10 votes in balloting announced Monday. Golfer Scottie Scheffler, whose victories this year included the Masters and an Olympic gold medal, was third with nine. The AP Female Athlete of the Year will be announced Tuesday. Moving from the beleaguered Los Angeles Angels to the powerhouse Los Angeles Dodgers, Ohtani won his third Most Valuable Player award and first in the National League, led his new team to its eighth World Series championship and created Major League Baseball's 50/50 club by hitting 54 home runs and stealing 59 bases. Ohtani signed a then-record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers in December 2023. Already a two-way superstar, he embellished his reputation even further despite not pitching all season while he rehabilitated from a second major right elbow surgery he had in September 2023. Ohtani went wild on offense, making every at-bat a must-see moment. The 6-foot-4 designated hitter batted a career-high .310 while easily surpassing his previous career highs in home runs and stolen bases. In September, he reached the previously unheard of 50/50 mark in a performance for the ages. Against the Miami Marlins in Florida, Ohtani went 6 for 6 with three homers, 10 RBIs, two stolen bases and 17 total bases. "It wouldn't shock me if he went 60/60 and 20 wins a year from now," Brad Ausmus, who managed the Angels in 2019 during Ohtani's second season in Anaheim, said recently. "This guy is the greatest athlete to ever play the sport of baseball and there's not a close second." Ohtani said he knew the Dodgers' franchise record for most homers in a season was 49. His previous best was 46, set in 2021. "I kind of wanted to get over that bar," he said. "I was pleasantly surprised I was able to pass that record." Ohtani carried the Dodgers offensively during the regular season, and he stayed healthy until Game 2 of the World Series. He injured his left shoulder trying to steal second base against the New York Yankees and finished the Series playing hurt. He underwent surgery a few days after the Dodgers celebrated their championship in early November. "I don't have full range of motion yet, but it feels a lot better," he told the AP. "There's no pain. There's obviously still a little bit of tightness, but slowly but surely it's getting better." Ohtani recently received an updated rehab schedule, and he's focused on the near-term. "It's the small steps that I think are very important to get me to the ultimate goal, which is to just get back healthy," he said. Ohtani is also throwing in the 70 mph range, which is typical for pitchers early in the offseason. "I'm going to continue to ramp up slowly," he said. The Dodgers' rotation for next season is in flux, and Ohtani is waiting to see how it shakes out. "We may go with a five-man rotation with a bullpen (game), which is what we did a lot during this season or we may have a six-man rotation," he said. "But it's all about balancing out when we can get rest and recuperate. We'll see where that takes us along the playoff chase. I've got to obviously pace myself, but again that situation will guide us to how we get there." The Dodgers open the 2025 season in Japan, where Ohtani is even more closely watched. "My personal goal is to be fully healthy by the time the opening games do start," he said. "To be able to pitch and hit would be great, but the situation will kind of guide itself." Each time Ohtani comes to the plate or steps on the mound, there's great pressure and expectation for him to perform spectacular feats. "I just go out there and try to stay within myself," he said. "I can only control what I can control and that's where you trust your teammates. The guys behind me, you trust they're going to make the plays for you. I don't really try to overthink it." Ohtani generated big bucks for the Dodgers off the field, too. Fans traveled from Japan in droves to see him play around the U.S. At Dodger Stadium, they paid extra for tours of baseball's third-oldest venue narrated by Japanese-speaking guides and to be on the field during pre-game batting practice. A majority of the fans bought Ohtani-branded merchandise, especially his No. 17 jersey. Ohtani's presence also helped the Dodgers land a bevy of new Japanese sponsors. Because Ohtani prefers to speak Japanese and use an interpreter with the media, he is shrouded in a bit of mystique. Asked before his first postgame series if he was nervous, he dropped a one-word answer in English: "Nope," which drew laughter. Japanese-born Dodgers manager Dave Roberts observed Ohtani's behind-the-scenes interactions with his teammates, coaches and staff, and came away impressed. "I really do believe that as good of a ballplayer as he is, he's a much better person. He's very kind, considerate, he cares," Roberts told the AP. "I'm just proud of any fame or glory or award that he receives because he just does it in such a respectful and humble way." Ohtani relishes his privacy and rarely shares details about himself off the field. That's why his February announcement via Instagram that he had wed Mamiko Tanaka, a former basketball player, stunned his new teammates and the rest of the world. The following month, after the Dodgers arrived in South Korea to open the season, he was enveloped in scandal when his longtime interpreter and friend, Ippei Mizuhara, was fired by the Dodgers after being accused of using millions of dollars of Ohtani's money to place bets with an illegal bookmaker. His new teammates rallied around Ohtani, who was found to have no part in the wrongdoing, and publicly it didn't seem to affect him even if he was privately distressed by it. By June, the uproar had subsided. Mizuhara pleaded guilty to federal bank and tax fraud charges and admitted to stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani. The public got a glimpse of Ohtani's softer side in August, when his dog Decoy delivered a first pitch to his owner on their shared bobblehead night. The Nederlandse Kooikerhondje exchanged an endearing high-five with Ohtani at the plate. As a result, Decoy became a celebrity in his own right, with his breed (pronounced COY-ker-HUND-che) making the list of the most mispronounced words of 2024. He and Ohtani were mentioned during the telecast of last month's National Dog Show, where the small Spaniel-type breed was among the competitors. "The number of the breed has kind of dwindled, so by him gaining a little bit of popularity hopefully that brings up the number of his breed," Ohtani said. "I do feel like we were able to, in a small way, contribute to the popularity of the dog and I'm sure Decoy himself would be happy about that." Ohtani will be looking to top himself next year while eyeing a repeat World Series title. "It's almost like right now you can lock in the Most Valuable Player in the National League award because no one has that ability or talent," Roberts said. "I'm just excited to see what '25 has for Shohei Ohtani." Get local news delivered to your inbox!Trump says US ownership of Greenland is ‘an absolute necessity'sg777 apps 。

Snapdeal's loss narrows to Rs 160 crore in FY24The AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here . EASTON, Pa. (AP) — Louie Semona scored 15 points off of the bench to lead Stonehill over Lafayette 70-65 on Sunday. Semona had six rebounds for the Skyhawks (8-7). Hermann Koffi scored 13 points, shooting 4 for 8 (2 for 5 from 3-point range) and 3 of 4 from the free-throw line. Josh Morgan had 13 points and shot 4 of 9 from the field, including 1 for 3 from 3-point range, and went 4 for 4 from the line. The Leopards (5-8) were led by Caleb Williams, who recorded 15 points. Lafayette also got 14 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks from Justin Vander Baan. Alex Chaikin also recorded 12 points, two steals and two blocks. Stonehill went into the half leading Lafayette 28-27. Semona put up seven points in the half. Stonehill used a 7-0 second-half run erase a five-point deficit and take the lead at 47-45 with 11:20 remaining in the half before finishing off the victory. Todd Brogna scored nine second-half points. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

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Published 4:41 pm Tuesday, November 26, 2024 By Data Skrive Let’s check out the injury report for the New Orleans Pelicans (4-14), which currently has five players listed (including Brandon Ingram), as the Pelicans ready for their matchup against the Toronto Raptors (4-14, four injured players) at Smoothie King Center on Wednesday, November 27 at 8:00 PM ET. Watch the NBA, other live sports and more on Fubo. What is Fubo? Fubo is a streaming service that gives you access to your favorite live sports and shows on demand. Use our link to sign up for a free trial. The Pelicans fell in their last matchup 114-110 against the Pacers on Monday. In the losing effort, Trey Murphy III paced the Pelicans with 24 points. The Raptors fell in their last matchup 102-100 against the Pistons on Monday. Scottie Barnes’ team-high 31 points paced the Raptors in the losing effort. Sign up for NBA League Pass to get live and on-demand access to NBA games. Get tickets for any NBA game this season at StubHub. Catch NBA action all season long on Fubo. Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER .

Grizzlies vs. Pistons Injury Report Today – November 27The Portland Trail Blazers released unfortunate injury news on Tuesday. The team announced that rookie center Donovan Clingan has been diagnosed with a grade 2 MCL sprain. He will be re-evaluated in two weeks. Clingan sat out Monday night’s loss at Memphis with a knee injury that occurred during Saturday’s win at Houston. Center Robert Williams III has been placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol. Williams left Monday night’s loss in the second quarter and did not return. He is out indefinitely after entering the return-to-participation protocol, which includes a series of steps designed to ensure an athlete is symptom-free before returning to the court. Clingan and Williams played well with Deandre Ayton (right index finger) out for seven games. Should he not return for Wednesday’s game at Indiana, the Blazers will be down their top three centers. Guard/forward Matisse Thybulle, who began the season out with a knee injury, suffered a right ankle sprain while working his way back. An MRI confirmed a grade 2 sprain. He is expected to miss three to six weeks. On Monday, the Blazers were without Ayton, guard Scoot Henderson (back strain) and forward Kris Murray (bruised sternum). Jerami Grant (knee) left the game in the second half and did not return. His status for Wednesday is unknown. -- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)

Ohtani wins third AP Male Athlete of the Year awardKiwis are in for an early dose of later this week - with temperatures pushing past 30C in parts of the country. MetService is forecasting highs of 28C, 31C and 29C for Napier, Hastings and Gisborne respectively on Thursday. “That’s well above average for this time of year – but we’re of course knocking on the door of summer,” MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said. That warmth will be felt in most regions: Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga and Whangārei are likely to experience highs in the early to mid-20s over the remainder of the week. Further south tomorrow, the mercury is likely to rise as high as 27C in Christchurch – well past its November average of 19C – while Timaru is in for a toasty maximum of 26C. “Those day-time temperatures are certainly on the warm side, but some of the overnight temperatures also don’t dip too low,” Makgabutlane said. Aucklanders were in for balmy lows of 16C and 17C over the next few nights, with high humidity likely to hamper sleep across the city. “But even parts of Southland have minimum temperatures in the mid-teens, which is fairly warm.” Makgabutlane said the heat was coming with a ridge of high pressure meeting a northwesterly air flow – drawing warm, moist air over New Zealand. On Thursday, a frontal system was also forecast to begin bringing rain and wind to the South Island, with the wettest weather expected in the west. But little of that was likely to reach parched northeastern areas like Hawke’s Bay. “If we’re lucky, there may be a little bit of rain from that, but there’s nothing substantial on the cards.” The dry and hot conditions are , months away from the peak of summer. Fire and Emergency New Zealand Hawke’s Bay district manager Glen Varcoe confirmed fire-risk indices were late last week elevated to high across the Ahuriri and Heretaunga districts, including Napier and Hastings and coastal regions north to Wairoa. Last Thursday, police said both fire safety officers and police had been investigating five bush and scrub fires in Northern Hawke’s Bay, in some cases suspected deliberately lit. are likely to be warmer than average through to January, with frequent northwesterly winds leading to more days above 25C. Also raising the odds for hot summer weather was the potential for marine heatwave conditions – already occurring in seas to the east of New Zealand – to expand and intensify.Some quotations from Jimmy Carter: We have a tendency to exalt ourselves and to dwell on the weaknesses and mistakes of others. I have come to realize that in every person there is something fine and pure and noble, along with a desire for self-fulfillment. Political and religious leaders must attempt to provide a society within which these human attributes can be nurtured and enhanced. — from 1975 book “Why Not the Best?” Our government can express the highest common ideals of human beings — if we demand of government true standards of excellence. At this Bicentennial time of introspection and concern, we must demand such standards. — “Why Not the Best?” I am a Southerner and an American, I am a farmer, an engineer, a father and husband, a Christian, a politician and former governor, a planner, a businessman, a nuclear physicist, a naval officer, a canoeist, and among other things a lover of Bob Dylan’s songs and Dylan Thomas’s poetry. — “Why Not the Best?” Christ said, “I tell you that anyone who looks on a woman with lust has in his heart already committed adultery.” I’ve looked on a lot of women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times. This is something that God recognizes I will do — and I have done it — and God forgives me for it. But that doesn’t mean that I condemn someone who not only looks on a woman with lust but who leaves his wife and shacks up with somebody out of wedlock. — Interview, November 1976 Playboy. This inauguration ceremony marks a new beginning, a new dedication within our Government, and a new spirit among us all. A President may sense and proclaim that new spirit, but only a people can provide it. — Inaugural address, January 1977. It’s clear that the true problems of our nation are much deeper — deeper than gasoline lines or energy shortages, deeper even than inflation and recession. ... All the legislation in the world can’t fix what’s wrong with America. ... It is a crisis of confidence. — So-called “malaise” speech, July 1979. But we know that democracy is always an unfinished creation. Each generation must renew its foundations. Each generation must rediscover the meaning of this hallowed vision in the light of its own modern challenges. For this generation, ours, life is nuclear survival; liberty is human rights; the pursuit of happiness is a planet whose resources are devoted to the physical and spiritual nourishment of its inhabitants. — Farewell Address, January 1981. We appreciate the past. We are grateful for the present and we’re looking forward to the future with great anticipation and commitment. — October 1986, at the dedication of the Carter Presidential Library and Museum. War may sometimes be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary, it is always an evil, never a good. We will not learn to live together in peace by killing each other’s children. — December 2002, Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. Fundamentalists have become increasingly influential in both religion and government, and have managed to change the nuances and subtleties of historic debate into black-and-white rigidities and the personal derogation of those who dare to disagree. ... The influence of these various trends poses a threat to many of our nation’s historic customs and moral commitments, both in government and in houses of worship. — From 2005 book “Our Endangered Values.” I think that this breakthrough by Barack Obama has been remarkable. When he made his speech (on race) a few months ago in Philadelphia, I wept. I sat in front of the television and cried, because I saw that as the most enlightening and transforming analysis of racism and a potential end of it that I ever saw in my life. — August 2008, commenting on then-Sen. Barack Obama’s candidacy. I think it’s based on racism. There is an inherent feeling among many in this country that an African-American should not be president. ... No matter who he is or how much we disagree with his policies, the president should be treated with respect. — September 2009, reacting to Rep. Joe Wilson’s shout of “You lie!” during a speech to Congress by President Barack Obama. I’m still determined to outlive the last guinea worm. — 2010, on The Carter Center’s work to eradicate guinea worm disease. You know how much I raised to run against Gerald Ford? Zero. You know how much I raised to run against Ronald Reagan? Zero. You know how much will be raised this year by all presidential, Senate and House campaigns? $6 billion. That’s 6,000 millions. — September 2012, reacting to the 2010 “Citizens United” U.S. Supreme Court decision permitting unlimited third-party political spending. I have become convinced that the most serious and unaddressed worldwide challenge is the deprivation and abuse of women and girls, largely caused by a false interpretation of carefully selected religious texts and a growing tolerance of violence and warfare, unfortunately following the example set during my lifetime by the United States. — From 2014 book “A Call to Action.” I don’t think there’s any doubt now that the NSA or other agencies monitor or record almost every telephone call made in the United States, including cellphones, and I presume email as well. We’ve gone a long way down the road of violating Americans’ basic civil rights, as far as privacy is concerned. — March 2014, commenting on U.S. intelligence monitoring after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks We accept self-congratulations about the wonderful 50th anniversary – which is wonderful – but we feel like Lyndon Johnson did it and we don’t have to do anything anymore. — April 2014, commenting on racial inequality during a celebration of the Civil Rights Act’s 40th anniversary. I had a very challenging question at Emory (University) the other night: “How would you describe the United States of America today in one word?” And I didn’t know what to say for a few moments, but I finally said, “Searching.” I think the country in which we live is still searching for what it ought to be, and what it can be, and I’m not sure we’re making much progress right at this moment. — October 2014 during a celebration of his 90th birthday. The life we have now is the best of all. We have an expanding and harmonious family, a rich life in our church and the Plains community, and a diversity of projects at The Carter Center that is adventurous and exciting. Rosalynn and I have visited more than 145 countries, and both of us are as active as we have ever been. We are blessed with good health and look to the future with eagerness and confidence, but are prepared for inevitable adversity when it comes. — From 2015 book, “A Full Life.”