TOP: Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel, left, blesses parishioners and palms during the Sunday Mass.
ABOVE: Bishop Deshotel blesses the palms during Palm Sunday Mass at Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Lafayette.
LEFT: Baskets with palms wait to be blessed.
Efforts to make healthier food cheaper may encourage better choices
BY EMILY WOODRUFF Staff writer
Most people don’t go to the hospital for the food But Rachel Sigur often makes the short trip from her job with St. Bernard Parish to the small cafeteria inside Ochsner Health’s St. Bernard Parish Hospital. On Monday, there was pork loin with gravy Midweek, a pasta primavera. And every day, a grilled chicken option. At the cash register, her meal often rings up for less than $4. The food options labeled with an “Eat Fit” seal, indicating it meets certain nutritional standards, are half price. That means the pork loin is $2.25. A side of green beans is 50 cents.
“You normally don’t think about going to eat lunch at a hospital,” said Sigur, 54, who heard about the cafeteria from some ladies in her accounting department. “But the food quality was good and the prices were really affordable.”
BY MUNIR AHMED, SAMY MAGDY and CARA ANNA Associated Press
“Pakistan is very happy that both Iran and the U.S. have expressed their confidence Pakistan says it
ISLAMABAD Pakistan announced Sunday that it will soon host talks between the U.S. and Iran, though there was no immediate word from Washington or Tehran, and it was unclear whether discussions on the monthlong war would be direct or indirect.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan walk prior to their meeting to discuss the Middle East war in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Sunday.
ASSOCIATED
BY JOEL THOMPSON Staff writer
Iberia Parish became the fifth parish to announce its intention to exit the Acadiana Regional Juvenile Justice District after the Parish Council passed a resolution during a Wednesday evening council meeting. The resolution declared Iberia’s “desire to withdraw from participation in the affairs of the Acadiana Regional Juvenile Justice District” as well as its “intent to sever all ties with the district.” The resolution also specifically cited the district’s proposed 1% sales tax as being a primary motivator for the decision, with language stating opposition to “any tax being imposed to fund the acquisition of a detention facility and/or to operate and maintain such a facility.”
STAFF PHOTOS By BRAD KEMP
Car hits pedestrians in U.K. city, injuring 7 LONDON Police in the English city of Derby arrested a man on suspicion of attempted murder after a car struck a number of pedestrians in the busy city center, sending seven people to hospitals.
Counterterrorism officers were assisting local police in the investigation, which is common practice for this type of incident, Chief Superintendent Emma Aldred of the Derbyshire Constabulary told a news conference on Sunday
“I would like to clarify that this does not mean the incident is currently being treated as terrorism,” Aldred said. Police are “keeping an open mind” about the motive, she said.
The incident occurred at about 9:30 p.m. Saturday on Friar Gate, a popular night spot in central Derby, a city of about 275,000 people northeast of Birmingham.
A 36-year-old-Derby man was arrested a short distance away and remains in police custody, Derbyshire Police said.
‘Back to the Future’ actor Tolkan dies at 94
Actor James Tolkan, known for his roles as a cigar-chomping naval commander in “Top Gun” and a gruff high school administrator in “Back to the Future,” has died. He was 94.
Tolkan died Thursday in Lake Placid, New York, where he lived, his booking agent said Saturday A brief obituary published on the “Back to the Future” website said Tolkan died “peacefully,” but no cause of death was given.
In “Back to the Future,” Tolkan portrayed the bow tie-wearing vice principal Gerald Strickland, who eyeballed students for trouble in the halls of the fictitious Hill Valley High School — in particular Marty McFly, played by Michael J Fox Tolkan also appeared in “Top Gun” as commanding officer Tom “Stinger” Jardian. Near the end of the film, when Jardian asks Tom Cruise’s character, Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, about his choice for future duty, Mitchell replies that he wants to be a Top Gun instructor “God help us,” Tolkan’s character replies, laughing. Born in Calumet, Michigan, Tolkan graduated from high school in Arizona and served in the Navy during the Korean War. He eventually made his way to New York, where he spent a quarter century acting in theater roles. He was a member of the original ensemble cast of “Glengarry Glen Ross.” Tolkan is survived by his wife of 54 years, Parmelee Welles, who said in a statement that her husband also was an avid art collector and adored animals.
Nestlé says 413,793 KitKat candy bars stolen
GENEVA Swiss food giant Nestlé says about 12 tons, or 413,793 candy bars, of its KitKat chocolate brand were stolen after leaving its production site in Italy last week for Poland.
The company, based in Vevey, Switzerland, said Friday that “the vehicle and its load are still nowhere to be found.”
The shipment of the crunchy bars, made of waffles covered with chocolate, disappeared last week while en route between production and distribution locations. The chocolate bars were to be distributed throughout Europe
The missing candy bars could enter unofficial sales channels across European markets, the company said, but if this does happen, all products can be traced using the unique batch code assigned to individual bars.
A spokesperson for KitKat said that as a result, consumers, retailers and wholesalers would be able to identify if a product is part of the stolen shipment by scanning the on-pack batch numbers. If a match is found, the scanner will be given clear instructions on how to alert the company, which will then share the evidence appropriately
“Whilst we appreciate the criminals’ exceptional taste, the fact remains that cargo theft is an escalating issue for businesses of all sizes,” KitKat said in a statement.
Dozens arrested after L.A. rally
Police say protesters at detention center failed to disperse
BY JOHN RABY Associated Press
Authorities in Los Angeles deployed tear gas near a federal detention center and made dozens of arrests following one of thousands of “No Kings” rallies held this weekend across the United States and in Europe to protest President Donald Trump’s actions and the war in Iran
Los Angeles police said Sunday that 74 people were arrested for failing to heed a dispersal order that was given after Saturday’s rally ended One other person was taken into custody on suspicion of possessing a weapon that police described as a dagger
The arrests stood out from what otherwise were mostly peaceful protests. Organizers said there were more than 3,100 events reg-
istered in all 50 U.S. states.
As hundreds of protesters surrounded a federal complex in downtown Los Angeles, some threw rocks, bottles and broken concrete blocks at officers, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement late Saturday night
Two officers who were struck by concrete blocks sustained undetermined injuries and received medical attention, DHS said.
Andre Andrews Jr., a Navy veteran and independent journalist, had walked the entire route of the Los Angeles rally and captured video of the event. He said after authorities gave the dispersal order, they deployed tear-gas canisters when protesters didn’t comply Some protesters wearing shields and gas masks on the other side of a fence at the federal complex picked up the canisters and tossed them back at police. Andrews said some people also smashed concrete barriers into smaller pieces and threw them at authorities.
“Does it make L.A. look bad? No. They’re bad actors causing prob-
lems, for sure,” Andrews said.
“The peaceful protest was good for the cause. You have the right to do that. But the other people, they were definitely causing problems.”
Airport delays could persist and ICE may not leave soon
BY JOHN RABY, MATT SEDENSKY and RIO YAMAT Associated Press
Even after President Donald Trump ordered emergency pay for Transportation Security Administration agents to ease long security lines, major U.S. airports on Sunday were still urging travelers to arrive hours early and federal immigration officers brought in to help may not be leaving anytime soon.
Trump’s executive order on Friday instructed the Department of Homeland Security to pay TSA officers immediately, though it’s unclear how quickly travelers will see an impact.
Tens of thousands of TSA employees have been working without pay since DHS funding lapsed on Valentine’s Day
The department’s shutdown reached 44 days on Sunday, eclipsing the record 43day shutdown last fall that affected all of the federal government.
Trump deployed Immigration and Cus-
toms Enforcement agents to some airports a week ago to help with security as TSA callouts rose nationwide the same officers who may now remain in place if TSA staffing strains continue.
When will ICE’s deployment end?
Making the rounds on Sunday morning news shows, White House border czar
Tom Homan said it depends on how many TSA employees would be returning to work after they start receiving their pay
“ICE is there to help our brothers and sisters in TSA We’ll be there as long as they need us, until they get back to normal operations and feel like those airports are secure,” he told CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Homan said it also depends on how many TSA agents “have actually quit and have no plan on coming back to work.”
Nearly 500 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown started, according to DHS.
When will TSA officers get paid?
Homan, in his CNN interview, said he hopes TSA officers will be paid by Monday or Tuesday
“It’s good news because these TSA officers are struggling,” Homan said.
“They can’t feed their families or pay their rent.”
Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Government Employees’ TSA chapter, said Sunday that he has heard from workers worried they may not receive their full back pay
because TSA management was given very short notice to begin processing
payments He also said TSA agents are concerned they could miss pay for time they were unable to work because they couldn’t afford to report for duty
“It is a disaster in progress,” Jones said.
What’s the current situation?
Some of the busiest airports in the United States continued to ask travelers to arrive hours before their departure time in order to get through security lines.
Baltimore-Washington International Airport, for example said Sunday that checkpoint wait times had improved from Saturday but “remain longer than normal.” The airport continued to recommend passengers show up several hours early, along with airports such as Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans.
“Security wait times are significantly longer than normal and can change quickly,” according to an advisory posted Sunday on the website of LaGuardia Airport.
Maryland Gov Wes Moore said in a post on X Saturday evening that more ICE agents were being deployed to BWI to assist at TSA security checkpoints to “speed up the clearance process for passengers not immigration enforcement.”
How soon will this help with delays?
It’s hard to tell.
Caleb Harmon-Marshall, a former TSA officer who runs a travel newsletter called Gate Access, said the staffing crisis won’t improve significantly until officers are confident that they won’t be subjected to more skipped paychecks.
“It has to be an extended pay for them to come back or want to stay there,” he said, estimating longer lines could linger for another week or two.
Jones, the TSA union leader, offered a more optimistic outlook on Sunday, saying he’s hopeful that passengers could see wait times ease closer to typical levels once workers are able to afford basic expenses like gas to get to work.
TSA will also have to decide whether to reopen checkpoints or expedite service lanes they closed or consolidated at airports due to inadequate staffing, which led to passengers standing in screening lines that clogged check-in areas or showing up far too early for their flights.
A handful of airports have experienced daily TSA officer callout rates of 40% or higher Nationwide on Thursday, more than 11.8% of the TSA employees on the schedule missed work, the most so far, DHS said Friday
Police said those arrested included eight juveniles. Also detained was a woman dressed as the Statue of Liberty, smiling as she chatted with an officer who led her away In Denver the police department said on the social platform X that it declared an unlawful assembly and deployed smoke canisters after a small group of protesters blocked a road and did not leave as asked. At least eight people were arrested, as was a ninth person later who police said was throwing objects. In Minnesota, an event on the Capitol lawn in St. Paul drew Bruce Springsteen as its headliner to celebrate resistance to Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement. Demonstrations also were held in more than a dozen other countries, according to co-executive director Ezra Levin of Indivisible, which spearheaded the events. U.S. organizers estimated that the first two rounds of No Kings rallies drew more than 5 million people in June and 7 million in October Levin estimated at least 8 million participants showed up Saturday
5 defendants each get 5 years in plea deal for fatal party shooting
By The Associated Press
DADEVILLE, Ala Five men involved in a fatal shooting at a sweet 16 party in Alabama were sentenced Friday to five years in prison after taking plea deals that were sharply criticized by some of the victims’ families.
Four people were killed and more than 30 were wounded when gunfire erupted at the 2023 birthday party in Dadeville, Alabama. The violence rocked the small city of 3,200 residents located about 60 miles northeast of Montgomery Willie Brown, 22; Wilson Hill, 23; Travis McCollough, 19; Tyreese McCollough, 20; and Sherman Peters, 18, pleaded guilty to reckless murder They were sentenced to five years in prison and 15 years on probation. A sixth defendant was given youthful offender status and his court records are not public. Only one defendant, Tyreese McCollough, ad-
dressed the court, saying he was “very sorry” for what happened, according to news outlets. Some family members criticized the plea deal, saying the sentences were not adequate punishment for the gravity of the crime and the young lives that were lost.
Four young people, including two high school seniors, were killed in the shooting that drew national attention: Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell, 18; Shaunkivia Nicole “KeKe” Smith, 17; Marsiah Emmanuel “Siah” Collins, 19; and Corbin Holston, 23.
“What justice would look like, it would be at least 30 years,” Amy Jackson, Smith’s cousin, told WSFA. District Attorney Mike Segrest told the court that the plea deals provided the best outcome, WSFA reported. He said the evidence showed that the defendants exchanged gunfire with Holston but they could not determine who shot first.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAVID J PHILLIP Travelers wait in long security checkpoint lines Friday at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO
Police arrest a protester dressed as the Statue of Liberty in downtown Los Angeles after the ‘No Kings’ rally Saturday.
Pope rejects claims that God justifies war
BY NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press
ROME — Pope Leo XIV said Sunday that God doesn’t listen to the prayers of those who make war or cite God to justify their violence, as he prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass in St Peter’s Square.
With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran entering its second month and Russia’s ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo dedicated his Palm Sunday homily to his insistence that God is the “king of peace” who rejects violence.
“Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war,” Leo said “He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: ‘Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood.’”
Leaders on all sides of the Iran war have used religion to justify their actions. U.S. officials, especially Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, have invoked their Christian faith to cast the war as a Christian nation trying to vanquish its foes with military might.
Israeli
Russia’s Orthodox Church, too, has justified Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a “holy war” against a Western world it considers has fallen into evil.
Palm Sunday marks Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem in the time leading up to his crucifixion, which Christians observe on Good Friday, and resurrection on Easter Sunday
police stop
Catholics
In a special blessing at the end of Mass, Leo said he was praying especially for Christians in the Middle East who are “suffering the consequences of an atrocious conflict. In many cases, they cannot live fully the rites of these holy days.”
Leo said that during Holy Week, Christians cannot forget how many people around the world are suf-
from celebrating Mass at historic church
BY MELANIE LIDMAN and NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press
TELAVIV,Israel — Israeli police prevented Catholic leaders from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to celebrate a private Mass on the Christian holiday of Palm Sunday for the first time in centuries, setting off a wave of criticism from the United States and others. Jerusalem’s major holy sites, including the church, are closed because of the ongoing Iran war, as the city has come under frequent fire from Iranian missiles.
The Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem called the police decision “a manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate measure.” It prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including the Latin Patriarch, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and the Custos of the Holy Land, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the place where Christians believe Jesus was crucified Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem and launches the Holy Week commemorations for Christians which culminates in Easter Israeli police said they had notified church authorities on Saturday that no Mass could take place on Palm Sunday because of safety considerations, the lack of access for emergency vehicles in narrow alleys of the Old City and lack of adequate shelter
However, the Latin Patriarchate said the Church of the Holy Sepulchre had been hosting Masses that aren’t open to the public since the Iran war began on Feb 28, and it was unclear why Sunday’s Mass and access by the two priests was any different.
“It’s a very, very sacred day for Christians and in our opinion there was no justification for such a decision or such an action,” said Farid Jubran, the spokesperson for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
Jubran said that the church had requested permission from police for a few religious leaders to enter the church for a private celebration on Sunday — not
BY SAMY MAGDY Associated Press
CAIRO An attack by
one that was open to the public. The Patriarchate said that the decision impeded freedom of worship and the status quo in Jerusalem
The traditional Palm Sunday procession normally sees tens of thousands of Christians from around the world walk from the Mount of Olives down the narrow, hilly streets toward the Old City, waving palm fronds and singing.
The Patriarchate canceled the traditional processional last week because of safety concerns, and has held Masses limited to fewer than 50 worshippers in compliance with the Israeli military’s guidelines for civilians.
Pizzaballa instead celebrated Mass in the nearby St. Savior’s Monastery, a soaring marble church which is located next to an underground music school that the Israeli military has deemed a safe shelter space. Later on Sunday, Pizzaballa held a prayer for peace at the Dominus Flevit Shrine on the Mount of Olives, but kept his homily concentrated on Jesus and didn’t mention the morning’s incident
Pope Leo XIV at the end of Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, prayed for all Christians in the Middle East who he said were living through an “atrocious” conflict. He said that “in many cases, they cannot live fully the rites of these holy days,” though he didn’t elaborate.
The Vatican spokesman didn’t immediately respond when asked to comment on the Jerusalem incident.
Nations criticize decision
The closure sparked a wave of criticism that Israeli authorities had gone too far in restricting worship, including from Israel’s top ally the United States.
U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, a devout evangelical Christian, said that the incident was “an unfortunate overreach ” He said in a statement that the proposed prayer with Pizzaballa and the others was well below the 50-person limit for gatherings For the Patriarch to be barred from entry to the Church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony is difficult to understand or justify,” he wrote.
French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the incident, which he said had added to the “concerning increase in violations of the status of the Holy Sites in Jerusalem.” In a post on X, Macron wrote: “The free exercise of worship in Jerusalem must be guaranteed for all religions.”
Italian authorities across the political spectrum condemned the move to restrict Pizzaballa, an Italian cardinal considered a leading papal contender in the 2025 conclave, to access the church.
The Italian government formally protested the incident to Israeli authorities and summoned Israel’s ambassador to Rome for clarification.
Premier Giorgia Meloni said that the police action “constitutes an offense not only against believers but against every community that recognizes religious freedom.”
Meloni’s conservative government tried to keep a balanced position with Israel during the war in Gaza, supporting Israel’s right to defense but condemning the toll on Palestinians.
Israel working on access
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there was no “malicious intent” and that the cardinal was prevented from accessing the church because of safety concerns, but that Israel would try to partially open the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the coming days.
In an interview with Italian Catholic broadcaster TG2000, Pizzaballa said there was difference of opinions with Israeli authorities over accessing the church, but that the dispute remained polite.
“We want to use this situation to try to clarify better what will be done in the coming days, respecting the security of all naturally but also in respect of the right to prayer,” he said.
Smaller churches, synagogues, and mosques are open in Jerusalem’s Old City if they are located within a certain distance of a bomb shelter deemed acceptable by Israel’s military and, if gatherings are kept under 50 people.
fering as Christ did. “Their trials appeal to the conscience of all. Let us raise our prayers to the Prince of Peace so that he may support people wounded by war and open concrete paths of reconciliation and peace,” Leo said.
Holy Week after Pope Francis
For many people at the Vatican, the start of Holy Week this year brings back memories of the final suffering days of Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday
When Holy Week opened last year, Francis was still recovering at the Vatican after a five-week hospital stay for double pneumonia. He had delegated the liturgical celebrations to others, but rallied on Easter Sunday to greet the faithful from the loggia of St. Peter’s Square. Most poignantly, he then made what became his final popemobile loop around the piazza. Francis died the following morning after suffering a stroke. His nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, later told Vatican Media that Francis had told him: “Thank you for bringing me back to the square” for the final salute.
Leo is due to preside over this week’s liturgical appointments and is returning to tradition with
the Holy Thursday foot-washing ceremony that commemorates Jesus’ Last Supper with his disciples.
During his 12-year pontificate, Francis famously celebrated the Holy Thursday ritual by traveling to Rome-area prisons and refugee centers to wash the feet of people most on society’s margins.
Restoring foot-washing tradition
Leo, history’s first U.S.-born pope, is returning the Holy Thursday foot-washing tradition to the basilica of St. John Lateran, where popes performed it for decades The Vatican hasn’t yet said who will participate, though Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II normally washed the feet of 12 priests.
On Friday, Leo is due to preside over the Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum commemorating Christ’s Passion and crucifixion. Saturday brings the late night Easter Vigil, during which Leo will baptize new Catholics, followed a few hours later by Easter Sunday when Christians commemorate the resurrection of Jesus.
Leo will celebrate Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and then deliver his Easter blessing from the loggia of the basilica.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALESSANDRA TARANTINO Pope Leo XIV caresses a child Sunday after presiding over Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on the Catholic feast of Palm Sunday
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MAHMOUD ILLEAN
Catholic faithfuls attend a Palm Sunday Mass at the Monastery of Saint Saviour in Jerusalem’s Old City on Sunday.
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in Pakistan to facilitate the talks. Pakistan will be honored to host and facilitate meaningful talks between the two sides in the coming days,” Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said after top diplomats from Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia met in Islamabad Pakistan later said the diplomats had departed for their home countries. The talks were originally scheduled to continue Monday. Pakistan’s foreign ministry did not answer questions, and Iran’s mission to the United Nations declined to comment.
Islamabad has emerged as a mediator having relatively good ties with Washington and Tehran, after what Pakistani officials call weeks of quiet diplomacy
Earlier, Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, dismissed the talks in Pakistan as a cover after some 2,500 U.S. Marines trained in amphibious landings arrived in the Middle East. He said Iranian forces were “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to state media. Iran also threatened to attack homes of U.S. and Israeli “commanders and political officials” in the region. A spokesperson for the Iranian military’s joint command, Ebrahim Zolfaghari, cited the “targeting of residential homes of the Iranian people in various cities” and other “malicious actions,” state media reported.
“We don’t know at what moment our homes could be targeted,” said Razzak Saghir al-Mousawi, 71, describing relentless airstrikes as
FOOD
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Subsidizing healthy food
Over the years, the Eat Fit logo has become a familiar marker on menus across Louisiana at restaurants, food trucks and even major events signaling that are there are no white carbs or added sugar, minimal animal-based saturated fats, moderate sodium and an emphasis on lean protein, produce and whole foods
Now, the 50% discounts on Eat Fit items in Ochsner cafeterias are part of an initiative to use subsidies to encourage healthier eating And studies, along with similar pilots at other businesses, suggest it has promise.
“We’ve had Eat Fit in existence since 2013,” said Molly Kimball, a registered dietitian who leads the program “We work with about 550 restaurants and food service spaces across the state.”
But inside many hospital walls, cafeterias and vending areas often more closely resemble the food offerings at gas stations than somewhere you’d try to live out your doctor’s health advice. Even if healthy foods are present, it might not be the thing people reach for At Ochsner, Kimball wondered what might help.
“Even if someone’s maybe not motivated by the healthy choice, could they be motivated by price point?” Kimball said.
The program was rolled out to all Ochsner locations last year and discounts the healthier items or sells them at cost if the 50% discount is steeper than the price to acquire them.
So far it seems to be working.
Systemwide, Eat Fit items grew from about 8% to 14% of total food and beverage sales in 2025, with some hospital locations reaching more than a third of all purchases. Sales of water and other healthier beverages rose sharply — up 71% in some cases.
Barriers to healthy food
At a nearby Wendy’s visible from the St. Bernard hospital parking lot, a salad runs about $8. A hamburger starts at $2.39.
Megan Knapp, a public health
DISTRICT
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The resolution was passed unanimously as part of the consent agenda without any debate from members of the council.
The 1% sales tax was initially slated to be placed on the ballot June 27, however the exit of four other parishes — Acadia, Evangeline, St. Martin and Vermilion — in addition to Iberia, led the juvenile justice district board to reassess plans for the funding and construction of a new juve-
Iranians crossing into Iraq urged the United States to end the war “I am definitely afraid.”
Meanwhile in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military will widen its invasion of Lebanon, expanding the “existing security strip” in that country’s south while targeting the Iranianbacked Hezbollah militant group No details were released.
Over 1 million Lebanese have been displaced in the war One of them, Mohammad Doghman, called Israel “an expansionist state.”
Call to end war
The war has threatened global supplies of oil, natural gas and fertilizer and disrupted air travel. Iran’s grip on the strategic Strait of Hormuz has shaken markets and prices. Now the Iranianbacked Houthi rebels‘ entry into the war could threaten shipping on another crucial waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb strait to the Red Sea.
An Associated Press video shot shortly before midnight showed a
huge plume of black smoke rising from a large fire in Tehran, following strikes in Iran’s capital. Earlier Sunday night, Israel’s military said that over the past 24 hours its fighter jets had dropped more than 120 munitions in Tehran, targeting sites used for weapons research, development and production. Around the same time, Iran’s state television said power was back in areas of Tehran that had experienced outages after attacks on electricity facilities.
More than 3,000 people have been killed in the war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that triggered Iranian attacks against Israel and U.S. military assets and other sites in neighboring Gulf Arab states. The war continues on the digital front as well.
‘Direct dialogue’
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said the meetings in Pakistan are aimed at opening a “direct dialogue” between the U.S. and Iran, which have largely com-
municated through mediators. The war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes during indirect talks. Pakistan said the foreign ministers met Sunday without U.S. or Israeli participation.
Iranian officials have rejected a U.S. 15-point “action list” as a framework for a possible peace deal and publicly dismissed the idea of negotiating under pressure But Iran’s state broadcaster has reported that Tehran drafted its own five-point proposal reportedly calling for a halt to killing Iranian officials, guarantees against future attacks, reparations and Iran’s “exercise of sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.”
Iran has eased some restrictions on commercial ships in the strait, agreeing late Saturday to allow 20 more Pakistani-flagged vessels to pass through. It “sends a clear signal that Iran remains open for business with the world, provided the United States abandons coercion,” said Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s former ambassador to Iran.
An adviser to the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, called for any settlement to the war to include “clear guarantees” that Iranian attacks on neighbors will not be repeated. He said Iran’s government has become “the main threat” to Persian Gulf security, and called for compensation for attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Strike threats on universities
Iran warned of escalation after Israeli airstrikes hit several universities, including ones that Israel claimed were used for nuclear research and development. Concerns over Iran’s nuclear program are at the heart of tensions.
The paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said Iran would consider Israeli universities and branches
researcher at Xavier University of Louisiana, said that cost disparity is an issue when it comes to public health.
“If you’re trying to eat healthier and it’s more expensive, that’s an additional barrier,” said Knapp.
“When you reduce that barrier, you
nile detention facility to serve all parishes within the district. Figures show that in the remaining four parishes (Allen, Jefferson Davis, St. Landry and St. Mary), the proposed 1 cent sales tax would raise around $34 million in its first year. After the first year, the sales tax would be reduced to a quarter-cent in order to help maintain the facility and would generate around $8.5 million annually
During a board meeting on March 10, representatives from the remaining parishes expressed hope that a new plan for a facility could be arranged in time for the
make it easier to change behavior.”
In recent years, federal and state policymakers have focused on lifestyle as the key to improving public health as obesity rates and chronic diseases have climbed over the past several decades.
In Louisiana, that has included ef-
November election, where voters will have a chance to approve the funding measure. In the previous justice district meeting, members had discussed the possibility of Iberia’s exit, which would leave only four remaining parishes within the jurisdiction. James P. Trahan, who represents District 8 on the Iberia Parish Council, introduced the resolution calling for Iberia’s withdrawal from the juvenile justice district and spoke on why he felt the district’s proposal indicated a need for the parish to remove itself.
of U.S. universities in the region
“legitimate targets” unless offered safety assurances for Iranian universities, state media reported.
“If the U.S government wants its universities in the region spared, it should condemn the bombardment” of Iranian universities by midday Monday, the Guard said.
U.S. colleges have campuses in Qatar and the UAE, including Georgetown, New York and Northwestern universities. The American University of Beirut and the Lebanese American University, also in Beirut, moved classes online and called it a precautionary measure.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has said dozens of universities and research centers have been hit, including the Iran University of Science and Technology and Isfahan University of Technology
Both sides in the war have threatened to attack civilian facilities, which critics have warned could be a war crime.
Death toll climbs
In Lebanon, officials said more than 1,200 people have been killed. There were fears of more deaths after Netanyahu, speaking on a visit to northern Israel, announced the expanded invasion. Hezbollah
“still has residual capability to fire rockets at us,” he said.
Iranian authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed in the Islamic Republic, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel.
In Iraq, where Iranian-supported militia groups have entered the conflict, 80 members of the security forces have died.
In Gulf states, 20 people have been killed. Four have been killed in the occupied West Bank. Thirteen U.S. service members have been killed in the war
found that consumers respond predictably to cost: When healthier foods are discounted, people buy and consume more of them. A meta-analysis looking at 22 of these studies found that a 10% price reduction was linked to about a 12% increase in consumption.
“We tend to think of healthier foods as more expensive,” said Pia Chaparro, a public health researcher at Tulane University who will be evaluating Ochsner’s Eat Fit program over the next three years. “These types of initiatives take the economic barrier out of the equation.”
Subsidized meals at a loss
Some others have pursued similar programs to Ochsner In break rooms at Laitram, the New Orleansarea manufacturing company, coolers and shelves hold meals prepared to Eat Fit or low-carb standards, along with typical offerings and snacks like chips and cookies.
The company pays about $12 per meal, but since 2020, it has sold the healthy options at half price.
forts to ban candy and soda from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP And through a produce benefit program, SNAP users can receive an additional 30 cents for every dollar spent on fresh fruits and vegetables.
At the same time, the federal government eliminated SNAP-Ed, the program that funded nutrition education and healthy eating guidance for low-income households.
The produce benefit is capped at $25 per month. In Louisiana, more than 800,000 people struggle with food insecurity, meaning there is no certainty on access to affordable, nutritious food.
Even as politicians point to these programs as improvements, healthier food often remains out of reach for many Americans. Federal data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows food prices rose 3.1% over the past year Lettuce is up 15.3%, frozen fish is up 8.1%, and ground beef increased 15.2%, the data shows.
Moreover, studies examining food pricing interventions have
“We don’t feel the amount of revenue this tax is going to raise is appropriate,” Trahan said.
“When we first entered into this district, we were under the impression that this was going to be a property millage, but along the way, it turned into a sales tax. For how much money this would generate for Iberia Parish, we think it makes just as much sense to strike out on our own.”
In order for a parish to be officially removed from the juvenile justice district, legislation needs to be approved by the state legislature. So far only Evangeline and Vermilion parishes have had
As a result, filling meals featuring shrimp, fish, chicken or beef alongside a vegetable such as cauliflower or sweet potato fly off the shelves The chili and meatballs are “fan favorites,” said Franck LaBiche, Laitram’s human resources director The company technically takes a loss for the meals, but sees it as an investment in their health benefits package, which also includes an on-site pharmacy, gym and clinic. They hope it leaves their employees in better physical and mental health, said LaBiche.
“I’d be lying if I tried to say, ‘Yes, I can relate it to health premiums,’” said LaBiche “But we know that it is very appreciated by people, particularly folks that work on the production lines and can’t leave for lunch to get a good meal at a good price.”
At Ochsner Baptist on Thursday, server Trinise Causey scooped teriyaki chicken into Styrofoam plates at a steady pace to satisfy the stream of patients, employees and families that were already lining up by 11:30 a.m.
Slathered in a dark sauce, the food looked good At the cash register, the Eat Fit option rang up for $3.
“I do think that’s what’s capturing them,” she said.
legislation introduced that would remove them from the juvenile justice district, and no bill has yet been passed by the legislature Additionally, Acadiana Regional Juvenile Justice District President Jessie Bellard declared his intent to appeal to Gov Jeff Landry not to sign any legislation removing parishes from the district during a March 10 meeting, which would effectively block any attempts by the Legislature to modify the district’s boundaries. Landry has not issued any public remarks on whether he would sign any legislation pertaining to the juvenile justice district.
STAFF PHOTOS By CHRIS GRANGER
Trinise Causey serves a healthy hot lunch on Thursday at Ochsner Baptist in New Orleans. From $2 meals in hospital cafeterias to subsidized workplace lunches, new efforts aim to make healthy food cheaper — and early data suggests it may shift behavior
Carrots and broccoli are among the healthy options during lunch on Thursday in the cafeteria at Ochsner Baptist in New Orleans.
PROVIDED IMAGE FROM VIDEO By U.S CENTRAL COMMAND
U.S. sailors and Marines aboard USS Tripoli (LHA-7) arrive Friday in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility
Energy deliveredata fraction of thecost, in afraction of thetime.
Officerfired aftershootingman in mental health crisis
BY DAVE COLLINS Associated Press
HARTFORD,Conn.
AWhite
Connecticut police officer who fatally shot aBlack man in amental healthcrisiswas fired Friday as public outrage grew over videos showing he began shooting 30 seconds after arriving at the scene, where other officers had spent several minutes de-escalating the situation
The officer’sfiring came a day after theRev.AlSharpton and noted civil rights lawyer Ben Crump spokeat the funeral of the man who was killed, StevenJones.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said he fired Officer Joseph Magnano because of what he saw on police body camera footage of the Feb. 27 killing.
The videos, released earlier this month by the state’s inspector general, showed that Jones was was on acity street holding alarge knife, but that the first groupof police officers who arrived backpedaled to keep their distance from him, spoke to himkindly, andseemed to have gotten him to calm down.
“And then Isaw one officer come in,” Arulampalam said at anews conference. He said that Magnano, arookie
officer still in aprobationary period, did not work with his teammates,” didn’tdeescalate, “andthe endresult of that was atragic incident that took thelife of Steven Jones.”
“Officer Magnano camein sirens blazing. He came in and —from the video —appears to have re-escalated the situationand made it worse.”
The local police union president, James Rutkauski, defendedMagnano, saying his actions were justified and in line with department policies.
“Officers will nowhesitate in split-second situations, not out of fear of thesuspect,but out of fear of political second-guessing afterward,” he said in astatement. Those lost seconds will slow responses and leave families more exposed as criminals sense the weakness.”
Contact information for Magnano could not immediately befound
AHartford police spokesman referred questions to Chief JamesRovella, who didnot returnaphone message or email Friday
Thestateinspector general’s office is investigating the shooting and will determine whether to file criminal charges againstMag-
nano. Earlierthis month, the office released the body camera footage from the four officers who responded to thescene.
Jones’sister,Audrey Jones, had called 911 seeking help for her brother because he was having amental health crisis, reporting that he had aknife and had cut himself.
woman is heard screaming, “Don’tshoot him!”
The videos show Prignano motioning at Magnano, appearing to tell him to back away.AsJones slowly walks toward Magnano, the officer gives afinal warning before shooting at Jones nine times, about 30 seconds after he got out of his cruiser,video shows.
Jonesdied at ahospital four days later,authorities said.
At Jones’ funeral, Sharpton delivered the eulogy Crump, alawyerfor Jones’ family whohas represented relatives of Black people killed in high-profile police shootings, said Jones “needed ahelping hand fromthe Hartford Police Department, but instead he got nine bullet holes in his body.”
Thebodycamera footage shows Steven Jones on acity street as three officers keep telling him for several minutestodrop the knife he is holding. The officersalsotell him they’re there to help. “Steve, you’reOK. We’re going to make sure you’re OK,” Officer James Prignano tells him.“Just drop the knife. We’re going to go talk to somebody,OK?”
Jones can’t be heard saying anything in the videos. About 12 minutesafter the 911 call, Magnano arrives, draws his pistoland shouts at Jones to dropthe knife, telling him,“You’re going to get shot,” the video shows. A
“Thatisa shame before God.And the statusofyour mental health and the color of your skin should not equal thedeath sentence,” Crump said. In astatement, Sharpton on Fridaycalledthe firing “a necessary first step,” but said “Jones’family andthe people of Hartford deserve full justice.” He and Crump called for reforms aimed at improving Hartford police’s response to calls involving mental health.
FloridamanosphereinfluencerClaviculararrestedonsuspicion of battery
BY EMILYST. MARTIN
Los Angeles Times (TNS)
Clavicular,the social media influencer leading the “looksmaxxing” movement, is out on bond after being arrested in Florida on suspicionofmisdemeanor battery
Themanosphereinternetcelebrity,born Braden Eric Peters, was taken into custody Thursday on awarrant issued by the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, according to aFort Lauderdale Police Department spokesperson.
Thesheriff’s office asked Fort Lauderdale policefor assistance in arresting Peters, 20, who theyalleged instigatedafight between his girlfriend, Violet Lentz,24, and a 19-year-old influencer in February at aKissimmee short-term rental. In the videoofthe altercation, which was broken into clips and cross-posted across social media platforms, Peters andthe woman arehangingout whenLentz arrives, upset.The argument escalates intoaphysical altercation withthe women pushing,punching
and pulling hair Petersisseen in thevideo standing to theside for much of the brawl,but at onepoint, he intervenesand holdsthe 19-year-old’s wrists while separating the women Whilethe woman’swristsare being heldtoher sides, Lentzpunchesher severaltimes, thevideo shows. The face of “looksmaxxxing,”a subculture hyperfocused on taking extreme measures to perfect one’sphysical appearance, Peters doesn’tjust boast afitlifestyle, he’s admittedininterviews to using
drugs from steroids, peptides and testosterone to methamphetamine andhas said he chisels his face by smashing his bones with ahammer.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commissionhas also launched aseparate investigation into another of Peters’ videos involving an alligator in theEverglades, according to the agency
In that video, the influencer appears to come acrosswhatisseemingly the carcass of an alligator floating in thewater and shoots it repeatedly.Peters has not been
Taking amidnighttrain from Georgia
Airportstalemate has reporter travel by rail
BY BILL BARROW Associated Press
ABOARD THE CRESCENT There’s something melodic about watching the sun rise over arural stillness broken only by the rhythms of steel wheels on tracks. Or so we tell ourselves.
In this case, being aboard atrain at all owed more to politics than poetry Congress and DonaldTrump were mired in theirlatestbudget stalemate, one rooted in the Republican president’s immigration crackdown andthe tacticsoffederal forces he has sent to U.S. cities. But this impasse has upended a foundational constant of American life today: easy airtravel.
In Atlanta, my hometown airport, cheerfully marketed as the world’s busiest, had descended into organized chaos. Unpaid federal employees called outfrom work, leaving adiminished security stafftoscreen travelers frustrated by hourslong waits in line. Iwanted to get to Washington for the NCAA basketball tournament. So Ieliminated the risk of amissed flightand booked the trainovernightand into gameday across a 650-mile route.
In this fraught moment in U.S. politics,Islowed down and thought aboutthings we take forgranted Who ever ponders the conveniences of that 20th-century innovation, the airplane, that makes 21st-century hustle possible? We book and board. An unconscious, first-world flex of modernity.It’seven rarer to grapple withthe inconvenience. My decision hadtaken me further back, to the 19th century and another defining innovation: the long-distancetrain.
A141/2-hour weekend train ride is time aplentytoappreciatehow completely politics, economics, social strife and fights over identity andbelonging have always affected the order of our lives, including how, when andwhere we move around in these United States. But Amtrak’sCrescent alsoallowed me to see the expanse of our collective experience.
Itraversed the urban, suburban and rural breadth of East Coast America. Ilearned how othertravelerscameaboard. Andinthat, I found the portrait of people, past andpresent, who refuse to be as
paralyzed assomeoftheir elected leaders
Convenienceonthe railways
There is little glamour late night in acrowded Amtrak station. Childrenare up pastbedtime andtended by frazzledparents. Olderadults struggle with luggage and stairs.
Airportsare not red-carpetaffairs either,ofcourse. Butthere is acertain cachet to Delta’sAtlantaWashington flights. They typically take abouttwo hours gate to gate. They oftenare slottedata midpoint gate of the concourse nearest themain terminal. That is almost certainly anod to members of Congress whouse it —but whohave lost some airline perks during this extended partial shutdown.
In normal circumstances Ican getfrommyfront porch to Capitol Hill or downtown in as littleas41/2 hours. Security lines these days could at least doublemyoverall airtravel time.
Thetrainisstill longer,and time is money,weare taught. But certaintyhas value,too, even if it means at 11:29 p.m. departure And at theAmtrak station, there were no standstill lines, no Transportation Security Administration agents, noICE agents as stand-ins.
Passengerswho arrivedmere minutes before departure madeit on board and found seats quickly —assigned in boarding order,not predetermined zones that yield jammedaisles. There’snoin-seat service or satellite TV.But even coach seats, the lowest Amtrak tier,are as spacious as airline firstclass –and there is Wi-Fi, so it’s not the 19th century or even 20th century after all.
On board, Iheard one crew member joke, “I’m no TSA agent.”
Thepathways of history
As aboy in rural Alabama, I counted train cars andwondered where they were headed. I’ve since read diary entries andletters from my grandmother and her sisters recounting World WarII-era weekend trips to Atlanta.
TheSouth’slargest city has ahistoricalhook,too. Originally named “Terminus,”Atlanta developed in the antebellumera as acritical intersection of north-south and eastwest rail routes. That is what drew Gen. WilliamTecumseh Sherman forone ofthe Civil War’sseminal campaigns that helped defeat the Confederacy Acentury after the Civil War, Delta choseAtlantafor its head-
This imagemadefrom videoshows the Virginia countryside as seen from an Amtrak train on Friday
quarters rather than Birmingham, Alabama, whichwas the larger city as of the1960 census. The company’sdecision was tied up in taxbreaksfor theairline, named for its crop duster origins in the MississippiDelta region.According to some interpretations,Delta’s decision was made easier because of the moreovert racism of Alabama’sand Birmingham’sleaders as they defendedJim Crow —acode that, amongotheracts, allowed states to segregatethe passengertrains that predated Amtrak.
On this night,Iheard many languages and accents, notable giventhe role that immigrantlabor played in building theU.S. rail system andespecially striking now withimmigration —legal and illegal —atthe forefront in Washington, my destination. Isaw faces that reflected U.S. pluralism, adifferent mixfrom what my grandmother andauntswould have seen alifetime ago. The array of voices celebrated the freedom and easeofrail travel. So did Agatha Grimes and her friends afterthey boarded in Greensboro, NorthCarolina, as part of alongweekendtriptocelebrate her 62nd birthday
“I got stuck in the Atlanta airport last week,” Grimes said, as hergroup laughed together in the dining car.“It’sjust nuts.”
Planes,trainsand automobiles
Just as politics,economics and subsidieshelped grow U.S. railroads, thosefactors diminished the network as automanufacturers, oil companies, roadbuildersand,
finally,airline manufacturers and airlines commanded favor from politicians and attention from consumers.
Riding hours across rural areas, Inoticed thejunkyards where kudzu and chain-link fencing framed rows of rusted automobiles. Isaw the farmland and equipment that helps feed cities and the rest of thenation. Iawoketosee the night lights of office towers in Charlotte, North Carolina, andits NFLstadium. Isaw vibrantcounty seats —and Ithought of countless other townslike them that are not thrivingastheysit disconnectedfrom passenger rail and far from the Eisenhower-era interstate system that we crossed multiple times on our way In each setting, voters —conservatives, liberals, the extremes and betweens —have chosen their representatives, senatorsand a president whonow set the nation’s course. When IarrivedinWashington, Ipaused to enjoyUnionStation’s grand hall andits Beaux Arts appeal, and Ilamentedhow much splendor has been lost because so manystriking U.S. terminals have been razed.I steppedoutside and looked up at the Capitol dome. While Ihad slept, the Senate managed abipartisan deal to fund all of theDepartment of Homeland Securityexcept immigration enforcement. As Icontinued northward, House Republican leaders rejected it. The stalemate continued. Iwas aweary traveler but renewed citizen.I had agame to get to. Andthe train rolled on.
charged with any crime in that incident.
“Florida’swildlife and waterwaysdeserve respect, not content farming,” Lt. Gov. Jay Collins said in astatement on X. Peters waspreviously arrested in February at Casa Amigos nightclub in Scottsdale,Arizona, and charged with forgery and possession of prescription-only pills. But theMaricopaCountyAttorney’s Officedroppedthe chargeson Feb. 11, citing “no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
‘Bachelorette’ contestant was driver in crash that paralyzed Cawthorn
BY BRIAN NIEMIETZ
Newyork Daily News (TNS)
One of severalcontestants
“The Bachelorette” fans won’t be seeing due to the cancelation of the dating show’scurrent season is Brad Ledford, who says he was behind the wheel during acar crash that leftformer North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn in awheelchair Ledford, 29, told People that he andthe controversialex-congressmanweredriving from Florida to North Carolina after spring break in 2014 when their SUV hit aconstruction barrier at around 65 mph.
Cawthorn, who was 18, was sleeping with his legs on the dashboard when the collision occurred. He was rendered unconscious.
The SUV quickly caught fire, according to Ledford, whose airbag deployed. He recalled rushing to thepassengerside of the vehicle, where abystander helped him remove his badly injured friend from the burning car
“I took my shirt offand wrapped it around his leg and then just kind of stayed with him untilthe paramedics got there,” Ledford told People.
Cawthorn’sdad,who owned the SUV, credited Ledford with saving his son’slife. Cawthorn said in a2017 deposition that he had no recollection of what occurred.
But when he retold that story afew years later in college, Cawthorn threw Ledford under abus. He claimed during achapel speech that his “brother” and “best friend” dashed into the woods, abandoning him to “die in afiery tomb.” Ledford refuted that claim as hurtful and untrue in a2021 Washington Post interview
“The Bachelorette,” for which he and21other menwere booked to compete for the affection of beleaguered reality TV personalityTaylorFrankie Paul, wasnixed shortly before theseasonwas slated to begin on March 22 because of domestic troubles involving the star
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOByBILL BARROW
HARTFORD COURANT PHOTOByAARON FLAUM
The Rev. Al Sharpton walks withAudreyJones to payrespects to her brother StevenJones, a manina mental health crisis whowas shot by police, during Jones’ funeral Thursday at the First Cathedral in Bloomfield, Conn.
One of the largest salt mines exists under Lake Erie
It provides road salt to keep streets safe during winter
BY SUE OGROCKI, PATRICK AFTOORA-ORSAGOS and PATRICK WHITTLE Associated Press
CLEVELAND Below Cleveland, in a subterranean world many surface dwellers don’t know exists, miners extract a crucial winter mineral — salt.
The Whiskey Island salt mine, owned by food giant Cargill, helps supply road salt across the Northeast and Great Lakes, where a colder, snowier-than-usual winter has driven demand. Many municipalities exhausted supplies that typically last through spring, said Cargill spokesperson Emily Tangeman.
“Our teams have been working overtime since September to support customers across the snowbelt,” Tangeman said in a state-
ment noting that early persistent winter weather boosted demand across the industry
The mine beneath Lake Erie, one of the world’s largest, produces 3 million to 4 million tons annually although that can fall short of demand in especially harsh winters.
Located 1,800 feet underground, it’s accessed from Whiskey Island, an industrial area on the shore right beside downtown Cleveland.
The mine opened in the 1960s and operates year-round, with salt extracted by drilling and blasting through vast tunnels formed from an ancient inland sea that dried up millions of years ago.
Inside, the mine is a maze of roughly rectangular caverns with chalky white walls and ceilings that extend for miles.
It’s dimly lit and often pitchblack beyond the glare of headlamps and floodlights.
Heavy machinery and conveyer belts rumble as small ATVs whisk miners around.
Maintenance superintendent George Campbell said operations
are continuous, with downtime used for upkeep and repairs to keep production steady
Cargill said it is prioritizing shipments to ensure salt reaches the areas of greatest need as winter
lingers in some regions.
Frequent smaller storms also increase usage, Tangeman said in the statement, requiring repeated salting and creating logistical challenges.
A return to harsher conditions across the Eastern U.S. meant some cities — including Boston; Bangor, Maine; and Ithaca, New York shivered through their coldest seasons in more than a decade. And winter weather is still not over in some parts of the country, so it’s not over in the Cleveland mine, either Campbell said there’s still decades of salt left to be extracted.
“I think that we have enough reserves to continue to keep people working for a long time,” Campbell said.
Cargill previously operated a mine on Avery Island that had been in operation since the mid1800s and was the first rock salt mine in North America. It closed in 2021 after a roof collapse killed two workers.
Oldest known whale recording could unlock mysteries
1940s discovery can help with ocean and animal research
BY PATRICK WHITTLE Associated Press
PORTLAND, Maine
A haunting whale song discovered on decadesold audio equipment could open up a new understanding of how the huge animals communicate according to researchers who say it’s the oldest such recording known. The song is that of a humpback whale, a marine giant beloved by whale watchers for its docile nature and spectacular leaps from the water, and was recorded by scientists in March 1949 in Bermuda, said researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Falmouth, Massachusetts.
Just as significant is the sound of the surrounding ocean itself said Peter Tyack, a marine bioacoustician and emeritus research scholar at Woods Hole. The ocean of the late 1940s was much quieter than the ocean of today, providing a different backdrop than scientists are used to hearing for whale song, he said The recovered recordings “not only allow us to follow whale sounds, but they also tell us what the ocean soundscape was like in the late 1940s,” Tyack said. “That’s very difficult to reconstruct otherwise.”
A preserved recording from the 1940s can also help scientists better understand how new humanmade sounds, such as increased shipping noise, affect the way whales communicate, Tyack said. Research published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states that whales can vary their calling behavior depending on noises in their environment.
The recording predates scientist Roger Payne’s discovery of whale song by nearly 20 years. Woods Hole scientists on a research vessel at the time were testing sonar systems and performing acoustic experiments along with the U.S. Office of Naval Research when they captured the sound, said Ashley Jester, director of research data and library services at Woods Hole.
The scientists didn’t know what they were hearing, but they decided to record and save the sounds anyway, Jester said. “And they were curious And so
they kept this recorder running, and they even made time to make recordings where they weren’t making any noise from their ships on purpose just to hear as much as they could,” said Jester “And they kept these recordings.”
Woods Hole scientists discovered the song while digitizing old audio recordings last year The recording was on a well-preserved disc created by a Gray Audograph, a kind of dictation machine used in the 1940s. Jester located the disc.
While the early underwater recording equipment used to capture the sound would be considered crude by today’s standards, it was cutting-edge at the time, Jester said. And the fact that the sound is recorded on a plastic disc is significant because most recordings of the time were on tape, which has long since deteriorated, she said.
Whales’ sound-making ability is critical to their survival and key to how they socialize and communicate. The sounds come in the form of clicks, whistles and calls, according to NOAA scientists who
study them.
The sounds also allow the whales to find food, navigate, locate each other and understand their surroundings in the vast ocean, scientists say Several species make repetitive sounds that resemble songs. Humpback whales, which can weigh more than 55,000 pounds, are the ocean’s most renowned singers, capable of complex vocalizations that can sound ethereal or even mournful.
The discovery of long-lost whale song from a quieter ocean could be a jumping-off point to better understanding the sounds the animals make today, said Hansen Johnson, a research scientist at the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium.
“And, you know, it’s just beautiful to listen to and has really inspired a lot of people to be curious about the ocean, and care about ocean life in general,” said Johnson, who was not involved in the research. “It’s pretty special.”
New study challenges site of human settlement in Americas
Not everyone agrees with findings
BY ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN AP science writer
NEWYORK For decades, the strongest evidence for the earliest human settlement in the Americas came from a site in Chile called Monte Verde. Scientists found echoes of human presence dating back to around 14,500 years ago, including footprints, wooden tools, foundations for a building and the remains of an ancient fire pit. They dated sediments and artifacts from the site to this time frame. A new study challenges the age of this important site, suggesting Monte Verde might be much younger than scientists thought. But not everyone agrees with the findings.
Scientists sampled and dated sediments from nine areas along the Chinchihuapi Creek by the site and analyzed how the landscape
changed over thousands of years. They uncovered a layer of volcanic ash from an eruption dating back to about 11,000 years ago. Anything above that layer — in this case, the Monte Verde wood and artifacts — had to be younger, according to study co-author Claudio Latorre.
“We basically reinterpreted the geology of the site. And we came to the conclusion that the Monte Verde site cannot be older than 8,200 years before present,” said Latorre, who works at the Pontifical Catholic Uni-
versity of Chile.
The researchers think changes to the landscape, including a stream wearing down the rocks, may have mixed old layers with new, causing researchers to date ancient wood as part of the Monte Verde site.
The findings were published earlier this month in the journal Science. Several scientists, including those involved with the original excavations, take issue with the results.
“They have provided, at best, a working hypothesis that is not supported by the
data they presented,” said Michael Waters of Texas A&M University, who had no role in either study
Experts not involved with the research say the study includes analysis of samples from the area surrounding Monte Verde, where the geology isn’t comparable to the site itself. And they say there’s not enough evidence that the layer of volcanic ash once covered the entire landscape.
They also say the study doesn’t offer a sufficient explanation for the artifacts found at the site that have been directly dated to 14,500 years ago, including a mastodon tusk fashioned into a tool, a wooden lance and a digging stick with a burned tip.
“This interpretation disregards a vast body of welldated cultural evidence,” archaeologist Tom Dillehay of Vanderbilt University who
led the site’s first excavation, said in an email.
The new study’s authors disagree with these criticisms, saying they sampled within, upstream and downstream of the site.
And there’s not enough evidence that the dated artifacts at the site really are that old, said co-author Todd Surovell, of the University of Wyoming.
The Monte Verde site is critical to scientists’ understanding of how people got to the Americas.
Scientists used to think the first arrivals were a group of people 13,000 years ago who made tipped stone tools known as Clovis points. The discovery and dating of Monte Verde, which was initially mired in controversy, appeared to put that to rest.
It’s unclear how a new date for the site might affect the human story Since Monte Verde, researchers have
uncovered sites in North America that predate the Clovis people, such as Cooper’s Ferry in Idaho and the Debra L. Friedkin site in Texas. But another big question is how, exactly, people got to the Americas from Asia, maneuvering south of two massive ice sheets covering Canada. Did humans arrive in time for the sheets to part, revealing an ice-free corridor? Did they travel along the coast in boats, or over a mix of water and land?
A revised date for Monte Verde could reopen discussions about the most likely route by early humans, said Surovell. Future independent analyses of other early human sites could provide more clarity
“Given enough time and given the ability to do science, science is self-corrective,” Surovell said. “It eventually reaches the truth.”
BY KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press
BERLIN A stranded humpback whale in Germany’s Baltic Sea looks weaker, and experts fear it won’t be able to find its way back to the Atlantic despite several attempts at its rescue.
A 500-yard restricted area was enforced around the whale so it could get some rest and hopefully free itself, officials said Sunday in a news conference in the eastern German coastal town of Wismar, near where the giant cetacean has been stuck.
“He would be able to do so if he regains his strength, and that is why we decided to
leave him alone, allowing him to actually set off and then successfully leave this area,” said Till Backhaus, the environment minister of the state of Mecklenburg-Pomerania, where Wismar is located.
“But we also have to assume that he is weakened. And he is also sick,” said Backhaus, adding that the humpback whale may have injuries because it came into contact with a fishing net
Previous efforts to rescue the 39- to 49-foot whale off a sandbank at Timmendorfer Strand beach and in the Wismar Bay with t he help of an excavator and boats, creating large waves to help it swim free earlier this week,
captivated Germans — with media sending news alerts of updates on its progress and streaming live video from the scene.
But by now, hopes are dimming that the whale is still strong enough to swim free and find its way back to the Atlantic through German and Danish waters.
“It is very noticeable that the animal is showing sig-
PROVIDED PHOTO
The Monte Verde archaeological site and Chinchihuapi Creek is located in Chile.
PROVIDED PHOTO
A Gray Audograph was used to record the sound of whales in the 1940s.
Have us take alook!
ST. LANDRY PARISH
Audit: Housing authority violated contract
Board paid to attend meetings
BY JOEL THOMPSON Staff writer
A recent audit of the St. Landry Housing Authority found the agency violated a federal contract by paying its Board of Commissioners up to $75 for attending meetings. The audit, dated March 18, reviewed the authority’s finances from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025, and estimated about $6,775 was paid to commissioners for meeting attendance.
The report also found the authority’s operating expenses increased by $231,627, or about 6%, during that period. The increase was offset by a slightly larger rise in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The audit noted that paying a per diem to board members for any-
thing other than travel expenses is prohibited under the authority’s annual contributions contract with HUD. The contract states that “no funds of any project may be used to pay any compensation for the services of members of the HA Board of Commissioners.” It is unclear how long the pay-
ments have been made, but the practice has been in place since at least March 2025, when Angela Beverly was named executive director In a written response included in the audit, Beverly said the authority will comply with the auditor’s recommendation to stop paying commissioners for meeting attendance.
RUFF PARTY
ABOVE: Dogs of all shapes and sizes and their humans enjoy the weather and each other on Sunday during the 28th annual Bark in the Park at Girard Park in Lafayette. The event was hosted by Acadiana Animal Aid FAR LEFT: Barbara Justiniano, of the Terrebonne Parish Animal Shelter, receives a sloppy kiss from Merald, a female pit mix available for adoption.
LEFT: Standing inside the Chow Bella bakery booth, Sarah Wiehe, of the Safe With Us Animal Rescue organization, carries Mugs in her purse. Mugs and his siblings were rescued in a sugar cane field by the group. RIGHT: McGruff the Crime Dog entertains dog lovers and their pups.
TOP 20 UNDER 40
‘I get to lead with love’ ‘Every day I learn more about our community’
ä In partnership with The Acadiana Advocate, the705 is recognizing its annual Top 20 Under 40 Acadiana Leadership Award honorees, presented by Advancial Federal Credit Union. Honorees will be recognized at a banquet April 10 at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Student Union Ballroom For tickets, visit bit.ly/20under40for2026
Bessard Davis
PHOTOS By ROBIN MAy
Voices of small farmers areoften obscured
Arecent guest column byChad Hanks, aLouisiana sugar cane farmer,bringing attention to the problems of Louisiana farming, while laudable, still overlooks a keyfaultoforganization.
Everyone speaks for theLouisiana farmers, except the Louisiana farmers don’tspeak for themselves.
That was my opinion years ago when Louisiana farmers were in distress, agreat many in bankruptcy.Alaw firm asked me, a turnaround business consultant, to explore solutions. Longstory short, Iorganized the Louisiana Farmers Association for asmall group of Louisiana farmers. They tried; it failed. The big, allied farm businesses won out. The farmers’ association was dissolved in 2023.
Associations are valuable not only because of their inclusivenature, but also for an exclusionary aspect. Louisiana farmers need to pound desks for themselves, notallied groups. They musthave theirown association.
SAM GALLO Baton Rouge
Trumpdoing what must be doneinIran
Regarding the letter byJennifer Ward, Ihaven’tmet asingle Donald Trump supporter who regrets his vote. However,I’ve run into hundredsofDemocrats regretting voting forPresident Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Isuppose she thinks letting Iran continue to have nuclear weapons is fine and dandy. Don’t think just because they are terrorists they won’tuse them against us. It’sagood thingshe is not in charge of anything.They areout to destroythe world and must be stopped. I’m gratefulto have astrong leader whoiskeeping us safe.
DAVID BASSHAM Houma
LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR
AREWELCOME.HEREARE
YOUR VIEWS
Don’tleave outsingers whomade‘Sinners’shine
Ireadwith interest Will Sutton’swellwritten columnonMarch 18 detailing the roleofLouisianans in thefilm “Sinners.”He mentioned theOscar forthe soundtrack won by Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson but notthe vocal music or dance or those who created it. This was notSutton’sfault;noonscreen credit was accorded theartistsgreatly responsible for the emotions provoked, especially in thescene of the encounter between the vampiresand thecitizens of Clarksdale
All the vocal music was created and supervisedbyone of the mostwell-known Irish voices in the country,Tony Davoren of Sunset, cultural consultant to the film. His wife anddaughter Sheila and Róisín were among the uncredited dancers.
Iquote fromJoanna Brown’sexcellent article in the newspaper on March 17:
“Göransson needed achoir of local singers whocould perform ‘Rocky Road to Dublin’ and‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ in an authentic Irish voice, and Davoren pulled together a
chorus of musicians from across south Louisiana who nailed theaccent, and the tunes.”
According to Davoren,“Every single person who showed up was from Louisiana,baby. This was Louisiana pride on full display musicians, singers, dancers, artists.”
Here are the names of those notcredited who deserve recognition: Tony Davoren, Richie Stafford, Debbie Cornett, Pete Dawson, Julia Dawson, Frank Bladen, Kevin Muggivan, Ross Muggivan, Jim Hogg, James Linden Hogg, Aaron Svoboda, Shannon Kelly,Jennifer Kelly,Andy Lee, Robert Ryan, Eric M. Martin, Toby Rodriguez, Brittany Piatz, Jacob Landry, Jesse Reaux and Beth Patterson. Music is acornerstone of culture.Ignoring musicians’ artistryisadisservice to all musical traditions.
Thanks to thenewspaper’s journalists who highlighted Louisiana’screative musical artistry MAYWAGGONER professor emerita, UL-Lafayette
Debate exemplifies tribal mentalitythatholdsLa. back
As aLouisiana expat who recently contributedtothe state’strend of “brain drain,” therecentcommentary on thenewspaper’s perceived duty to “cater” toasingle demographicofits customer base effectively exemplifies the cultural issues that drive educated people out of the state. Louisiana culture, perpetuated by LSU, outdated perceptions of masculinity and “KeepingUpwith theJoneses” syndrome, overwhelmingly indoctrinates the population into associating their identities with sports teams. As our older,God-fearing generations appear to care less about the decorum and
criminal actions of our government, their attention undoubtedly narrows in on whatever cultural clickbait topic their leaders put before them.
The news is not an LSUgame. The news is not aSaints game. Youare not wearing a jersey.This is not ateam. This is real life— and the childish attitudes exhibited by the older generations during times of political turbulence makemewonder,“Where are the adults?”
Certainly not in Louisiana.
DCFS needs to be fixed, but focusondeeper problems
Iama licensed clinical social worker.I workedfor theDepartmentof Children andFamily Services forsix years before Ileft in December 2025 after whistleblowing due to policy changesthatI felt were jeopardizing child safety.I am writing to talk aboutSen.Regina Barrow’s proposed bill to abolishDCFS.
Iunderstand that there is (justifiably) alack of confidence in the departmenttodoits job.However, Istronglybelieve that abolishing DCFSwouldonly create further chaos andinstabilityinthe child welfare system and would further jeopardize child safety.I believe reforming the system is amuchbetter solutionthan abolishment
Ibelieve that part of theagency’s dysfunction stemsfrom thegovernor appointing unqualifiedpeople in positionswhere incompetency is dangerous. DCFSleadershipshould be appointed by experienced child welfare professionals, notthe governor Secondly, manyofDCFSissues stem from failure to maintainaqualifiedworkforce. DCFSisnot an agency wherepeoplewant to work longterm.Tofixthis,DCFSshould see an increase in itsbudget to increase worker wages, hiremore workers to lowercaseload numbers andimplement programstosupport employee mental health.This job literally traumatizes people.Anyone who works overtime to protect children should notbelivingpaycheck to paycheck. We allneed to reflect on howLouisianaculture promotes statewide neglect of women andchildren.We are forcing women to givebirth whethertheywant to or not, but when those children have needs, we cutfunding to social services. Children andfamiliesare hurting due to adiseased cultureofmisogyny and hyper-individualismthatisactually hurtful to everyone. This cultural disease needstobehealed if we can ever expect Louisiana children and familiestothrive
MELANIEMANN Hammond
Hegsethfails to demonstrategravitas needed foroffice
PAUL NICK Austin,Texas
OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name and the writer’scity of residence.The Advocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address and phone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box588 Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com. TO SEND US ALETTER, SCAN HERE
Pete Hegseth’sbellicose behavior and overt excitement is moreappropriate to apubescent teenager winner of avideo gamethan the solemndemeanor appropriate fora secretary of the Department of Defense whounderstands the gravity of war.His referring to the deaths of six American service members by saying, “bad things happen,” and his complaint that the media is focused on this minor episode are deplorable. The thousands of military members whohave given their lives in defense of our nation are American heroes and not dismissible events.
DEBRA SULLIVAN RAMIREZ
president, Mossville Environmental Action Now LakeCharles
While theproposed Low Carbon Logistics CCS project targetsRagley and Sulphur, this is astatewide issue of environmental justice. As president of Mossville EnvironmentalAction Now (MEAN), Iamsounding an alarm for all of Louisiana. Ourcommunity in Mossville was effectively erased by theencroachment of industry. We have seen firsthand how “public necessity”isusedasatool to displace families. Mossville Environmental Action Now stands in solidaritywith our neighbors. We are watching, and we are ready to take action.Wecannot allow the state to continue embroidering hazardous CO2infrastructure into residential areas. Ourneighborhoods are not industrial sacrifice zones. We demand adenial of these permitstoensure that what happened to Mossville never happens to another Louisiana community
This generous stateisagain giving massive tax breaks to big business, in this case for data centers. The state also has to provide significant newelectric infrastructure and water availability.That’s alot of money upfront and money forever from ouralready-strapped tax base.Inreturn, theclaim is that the state will benefit in the long run from taxes paid by employees andassociated businesses. Data centers employ few people beyond initial construction, so that claim sounds false. Anyway, that’spassing thetax burden onto others. In simple language, thedeal looks like this: “Weare going to makemassive amounts of money,but we won’tpay going-rate taxes on the facility that generates future major profits. In return, thestate of Louisiana has to provide significant electrical power and fresh water infrastructure. Andifitturns out to be abad financial deal forthe state, so what?” Sounds like afootball coach contract to me.
ANDREWGALLIEN Harahan
Hegseth and his bone-spurred boss, whosneered at the bravery of prisoners of warand mocked the valor of fallen soldiers with his baseball-capped salute, fail to comprehend basic military tenets. Military inductees vow to support and defend our Constitution, thus the Department of Defense, not War. Of the thousands of military men and women Ihave met through the years, none aspired to becomekilling machines. They do not desire to rain death and destruction from the sky.Infact, not only is the opposite true, manyofour brave soldiers sufferlifelong anguish over their wartimeexperiences.
SUSAN DUHON
Many
PHOTO By PAUL KIEU
Achoir of singers whoworked on the 2025 film ‘Sinners’ performa selection of Irish folk songs featured in the movie during the Celtic BayouFestival in Lafayette on March 14.
Fighting evil is aworthy causewhenitcomes to Iran
“The only thing necessary forthe triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” This often-quotedstatement wasoften attributed toIrish philosopher-politician Edmund Burkeand is more important today than perhaps at any other time in global history
Today,the United States and Israel are in amilitary battle against one of the most murderous, repressive and brutal regimes in world history —the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran is directly responsible for the murders of thousands of Americans,tens of thousands of its own citizens and the rape, beheading, burning and kidnapping of over 1,200 innocent Israeli citizenson Oct.7, 2023. More than 80 years ago, theworld came together to fight and ultimately defeat the evil of NaziGermany, fascist Italy and imperialistic Japan World WarIItruly reflected thegood of theworld eliminating an evil unprecedented in the annals of global history Today,asimilar good-versus-evil battle again exists, and it istime for theAmerican and European publics to understand the horrific consequences if Iran and its proxies were ever able to develop nuclear arms.Such bombs would first be directed at Israel (whose destruction the theocratic stateofIran has long sought) and soon thereafter target New York City,Chicago, Los Angeles and every other American community
As alifelong Democrat,Ihave had many disagreements withthe current and past Trump administrations regarding various domestic policies. However,when it comes to the current international situation, Istand wholeheartedly behind our U.S. government. Unlike many in my own party, I do not feel the need to oppose every Trump position. Many of my Democratic Party colleaguesare on the wrong side of history.Idonot object to an honest debate regardingconstitutional authority to declare war,but Iammore concerned with defeating an enemy that is cruel, murderous and seeks to destroy thedemocratic principles most Americans hold so dear. In feeling so, Iamcontent as aDemocrat —but more importantly as an American —supporting apresident with
whom Ihavemany disagreements.
Regrettably,both the isolationists on the political right and so-called progressives on the political left are unable to see the dangersIran presents.While the Tucker Carlsons of the worldspew anti-Semitic rhetoric, pro-Hamas protesters on American campuses and streets don’ttruly understand how Iran and its proxies stand fully against the rightsthey seek to protect for women, LGBTQ+, immigrants and more. It is frustrating to watch both of these extremes in our political dialogue. Finally,Ihave spent thepast four years advocating for,and supporting, the courageous citizenry of Ukraine in itscontinuingbattle against Russia and itswar criminal president, Vladimir Putin
LikeIran,Putin has committed historic atrocities against innocent civilians, including attacks on schools and hospitals, and theunlawful kidnapping of over 20,000 youth. Ihave traveled to Ukrainenumerous times since the2022 war began and am continually amazed by the bravery,courage, strength and beauty of theUkrainian people.
Iamproud that alarge percentage of Democrats have supported Ukraine
in its current conflict. Iwish our president and more Republicans would do likewise, so ajust and sustainable peace can be found.
Butfor those pro-Ukrainian members of mypartywho object toU.S. involvement in Iran, do they not understand that it is the Islamic Republic of Iran providing lethal drones, missiles and other arms to Russia, which are killing theUkrainian people? Adefeated Iran will greatly benefit Ukraine and also lead to aworld which is safer, morepeaceful and offers achance for atruly prosperous and stable Middle East. No one wants to see war and the ultimate sacrifice of our brave servicemen and servicewomen fighting to preserve democracy and peace. But, as we saw eight decades ago, some thingsare worth fighting for when confronted with true evil.
So, repeat,wemust never allow evil to prevail as good men idly stand by May God protect theforces of good!
Arnie D. Fielkow is aformer president of the New Orleans City Council and former CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans
Gov.Jeff Landry and his followers in the Leg-
islature always claim they’re on the hunt for government actors whoare wasting our money
Well, they can easily spot the culprits in one of history’slargest wastes of public spending just by looking in amirror
Since 2007, they have approved morethan $21 billion in spending on our Master Plan for aSustainable Coast. Using that funding, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority produced global-leading research and engineering on how to save and rebuild coastlines threatened by industrial destruction and the growing impacts of climate change.
The U.S. Department of Education recently released aproposed rule change thatwould affectfederal loan limits for graduate students. These changes could harm the country’sworkforce and limit access to advanced education for some individuals. Under the proposal, atwotiered loan system would be created for graduate students. In onetier, made up of 11 designated “professional” degree programs,students would be eligible to borrow up to $50,000 per year,with a$200,000 lifetime cap. These include pharmacy,dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry,osteopathic medicine, podiatry,theology and clinical psychology
munities desperately need. Under this proposal, however,their access to federal loan support would be half that of other students. Theaverage graduate studentinthe United States is 33 years old. At 33, many people have mortgages,children, aging parentsorall three. Many are primary breadwinners.
Other graduate students,including those pursuing degreesinnursing, public health, ministryand counseling, would be limited to $20,500 annually and a$100,000 lifetime cap.That distinction will determine whocan afford to enter entire professions. There is no question that future physicians,dentists and attorneysrequire significant financial support to complete their degrees, but they arenot alone in thatreality Across the country,thousandsof graduate studentsare pursuing degreesinprofessions thatrequire advanced expertiseand that ourcom-
Returning to school at that stage of life often means leaving asteady job with benefits. It is a calculated risk taken in pursuit of acareer that will ultimately contributetosociety and,often,improve their family’s financial stability. Graduate loans make that risk possible.Withoutthem,many simply could notafford to step away from income long enough to complete therequired graduateeducation. Capping loans at $20,500 ayear in high-cost programs that demand full-time commitment will limit the number of students able to return to school. The policy will also disproportionately affect first-generation college students and those from lower-income backgrounds who arefar less likely to have family resources to cushion the financial strain of graduateschool. For them, federal loans are foundational. At the same time, thenation is confrontingacute workforce shortages. Can the U.S.afford to graduatefewer mentalhealth professionals, like coun-
selors and social workers, in aclimate already desperately short of mental healthcare providers? Can we afford fewer caregivers like nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists and nurse-midwives in the midst of anational nursing shortage that is only worsening? Fewer healthcare providers like occupational, speech and physical therapists? Fewer professors and researchers to educate university studentsacross a multitude of career paths? These are all examples of professions —and yes, they are indeed professions in every way that the 11 on the list are professions —ingreat demand and offering society asignificant return on investment. Are we willing to gamble that these proposed loan caps will not severely hamper qualified individuals from seeking graduate education? Iam neither willing nor supportive of risking all that would be lost should these caps be enacted.
Iencourage others to act in support of the future composition of our health care system, our mental health workforce, our educational institutions and thebroader professional class that sustains our communities. Decisions about financing graduate education inevitably shape who is able to answer thecall to serve.
Michelle Collinsisdean of the College of Nursing and Health at Loyola University New Orleans
And what have the governor and his allies done with those very expensive facts? They’ve mostly ignored and denied them —and even worked against the solutions uncovered forour coastal salvation.
An example of that waste wasrecently highlighted in new research that madeshocking headlines around the world: Current sea levels average 8inches to afoot higher worldwide and several feet higher in someareas —than previously thought. That meanssurging sea levels caused by the fossil fuel emissions driving climate change will be drowning many coastal communities much sooner than expected.
The newssent manygovernments rushing to find funding foremergency adaptations. But Louisiana’scoastal research community wasnot panicked.
That’sbecause those new sea levels were largely aresult of finding somecoastline elevations had previously been overestimated, especially in poorer countries with less funding for scientific research.
So, the oceans are not higher,the land in some places is lower than thought.
Louisiana was not listed among suspect areas because we have the mostaccurate records of coastal elevation of any spot on the planet. For 20 years, the CPRA’s Coastwide Reference Monitoring System (CRMS) has used almost 400 stations across the coastal zone to constantly take important ecological measurements including elevation and subsidence. There is nothing like it anywhere in the world.
“I have realized foralong time what we have here is completely unparalleled,” said Tulane University professor and researcher Torbjörn Törnqvist. “What we have been able to do in Louisiana, we are not able to do in any other coastal area in the world foratleast the next 10 to 20 years. “My colleagues even in western Europe are always amazed and quite envious of what we have to work with.”
Thanks to CRMS and other master plan research, Louisiana’scoastal zone is arguably the mostunderstood in the world. And when that information is combined with the peerreviewed findings on the dramatic acceleration of sea level rise, our governor and lawmakers are armed with the mostaccurate information of how to extend the lives of communities on our sediment-starved and sinking coastal landscapes —the mostproductive and economically important part of the state.
The conclusions reached with the $21 billion the state has spent include the fact that emissions from the use of fossil fuels are causing the rapid rise of sea level that could drown much of the area below I-10 in the decades ahead.
The obvious and urgent response would be forLouisiana to join other states and nations in working to reduce the production and use of oil, gas and coal.
But Landry,who has called climate change ahoax, has devoted his entire political career in Congress, as our attorney general and now as governor to fighting those reforms because they might hurt oil and gas profits.
And he has killed the river sediment diversions in the master plan that the state-sponsored science has shownare the best way to ensure any long-term sustainability to some parts of our coastal zone.
This is agovernor whowas outraged at wasting $100 million on an LSU coaching mistake but seemstobeOKthrowing away the facts found about our coastal survival after spending $21 billion —all because it might hurt the oil business he loves.
BobMarshall canbereached at bmarshallenviro@gmail.com, andfollowedon X, @BMarshallEnviro.
Bob Marshall
Arnie Fielkow GUEST COLUMNIST
Michelle Collins GUEST COLUMNIST
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO
Smokerises after amissile attack in TelAviv, Israel, on June 13.
Washington Parish campground sold for$2.5M
Once home to CajunOlympix, companyplans to reopen
BY BOBWARREN Staff writer
AWashington Parish campground that gained ameasure of fame for its annual Redneck Cajun Olympix has been sold for $2.5 million to aNorth Carolina-based investment firm making its first foray into the camping business.
The sale of the Silver Creek Campground in Mount Hermonclosedin late February,said Zach Soder,whose Soder Capital purchased the site from the Alabama-based JSM Property and Development.
SpencerMann, president of JSM, had sought to sell the72-acre campground last year at an auction. But the winning bidder wasnot able to fulfill the purchase requirements. So Mann said he began reachingout to businessesand continued marketing the site through Facebook.
That’swhere Soder saw it
“Between Christmas and New Year’s, Isaw it on
Facebook and we were able to strikea dealoverthe holidays,” Soder said. Soder said SilverCreek is the company’sfirst campground, but if things go as wellashehopes,itwon’tbe the last. He noted thatmore people are choosing family campgrounds for weekend tripsand vacations.
“There’satrendthere,” he said. “This is the first of, hopefully,many campgrounds.”
Soder saidhis company is typically invested in apartments, but hasbeen looking for other investment avenues.
SilverCreek,whichhad been open fordecades and attracted aloyal followingof campers, was known in part for its annual Redneck Cajun Olympixs event, which included eventslike lawn mower races and abelching contest. Thecampground also hosted biker rallies and holiday-themed events Thecampground off La. 1055 hasbeenclosedsince last July,whenMann’scompany purchased it from Silver Creek Campground SSS LLC.Mann said his company bought the campground with theintent to sellitquickly He would not disclose what he paidfor it.
Mann said campgrounds
traditionally had been largely runas“mom-and-pop”operations.
But, he said in an email, “Outdoor hospitalityhas become amajor focus for private equity over thepast several years, and thereis significant demand for larger parks thatcan be repositioned and scaled.”
Silver Creek has been run as afamily operation for yearsand Soder said it would retainthat family feel.
He said they plan to hire acampmanager,perhaps a husband-wifeteam, to be onsiteand run things.Healso said some seasonal employees will be hired as well.
He said the company hopestoreopen thecampground soon, perhaps sometime in April.
Soder said his company will worktoimprove Silver Creek’s marketing efforts and website. Adiscgolf course will alsobeadded, he said.
He saidherecently met with officials in Washington Parish to discuss efforts to boost tourism
Andthe RedneckCajun Olympix? Sodersaid it’s undecided at this point if they’ll bring those back, but added thathewas leaning towardit.
NewOrleans Jazz Fest foundation partswayswithCEO
Departurea
‘mutualdecision,’ nonprofitboard leader says
BY KEITHSPERA
Staff writer
Amonth before the 2026 New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival, the nonprofit organization that owns it has parted ways with its CEO. Blake-Anthony Johnson was hired as CEO of the New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Foundation in January2025. An Atlanta native, he came to New Orleans from Chicago, where he most recently led the Chicago Sinfonietta orchestra. Johnson’sdeparture from the Jazz &Heritage Foundation after only 14 monthson the job was a“mutual decision…ashetransitionsto other opportunities,” the foundation board’s President Rachel F. Cousin said in astatement.
BESSARD
Continued from page1B
By bringing together movement, education, local businesses and community resources, the festivalcreates connection, celebrates local culture and encourages healthier lifestyles in an exciting, inclusive way.Everything Idoisguided by the belief that the body is a temple and that caring for it is an act of self-respect and love for the community
DAVIS
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from. Seeing that pride growand knowing they want to pour back into our hometown means everything to me. What’syour favorite thing about whatyou do for aliving? My favorite part of my work is being able to make areal impact on people’s lives. Every day Ilearn more about our community,its needs and how to creatively meet them. That workcreates adomino effect, and my team and our youthbegin to seewhat’s possible and start modeling that same mindset. Through interest-based learning, our programs help youth, staff and even families discover their passions and findtheir place in the city.Havingthe opportunity to support oth-
PHOTO By MARy STROUT
NewOrleans Jazz &HeritageFoundation CEOBlake-Anthony Johnson, from left,stands with TimPoche, Rachel Cousin and Billy Hoffman during the 2025 Jazz Fest Gala in New Orleans on April 23. Johnson is leaving his positionafter 14 months on thejob
News that Johnson was out as CEO brokeonthe eve of aMarch 24 news conference at the Fair Grounds thatmarked the monthlong countdown to Jazz Fest’s April 23 opening day.Jazz Fest’sschedulecubes were also released that day Johnson’sreplacementon an interim basis is Sarita
I’m honored to serve. What’syour favorite thing about what you do for aliving?
WhatI love most is the heart behind it. Iget to lead with love, show up with intentionand serve people in away that feels deeply aligned with mypurpose Ihave the privilege of encouragingpeople to choose themselves, believe in their potentialand realize they’re capableofmorethanthey ever imagined. Ialso love helping people seethata healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to be complicated or
ers’ dreams and purpose is what makes thiswork meaningful to me. Youhelped buildyouth programs focused on STEM,well-being,and skill building,including launching acoed sports league.What’s amoment with ayoung person that confirmed the impact you’remaking? One of the momentsthat reaffirmed my work was when aformer Youthofthe Year returned and told me our time together changed the trajectory of his life. He was facing challenges at home and at school, but the clubgavehim space to discover who he wanted to become.Together,we created aprogram to support him, and that program is still active today.What started as acoed football team grew into adance team, then aleadership and workforce development program and eventually a basketballleague. Investing intentionally in oneyoung person createda domino
Carriere, the foundation’s chiefadministrative andfinancial officer,who hasbeen on staff since 2014 andhas abackground in accounting. As interim executive director,Carriere spoke on the foundation’sbehalf during the March 24 news conference butdid not mention Johnson’sdeparture and de-
intimidating. By breaking wellnessdown into simple everyday choices,Ihelp replace fear and overwhelm withconfidence, excitement and alittle fun. Watching people grow stronger,trust their bodies, celebrate their progress and carry thatenergy intotheir families and communities is what makes this worksojoyful and meaningful to me. You’ve expanded from training individuals to corporate wellness and community programs.What’sone programormoment that showed you your work waschanging someone’s
effect that continues to impact manyothers. Sometimes changing one life is how you createpathways for many
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clined to comment further afterthe news conference. Cousinwas not available to answer additionalquestions.
“With more than adecade of servicetothe Foundation, Carriere brings extensive institutional knowledge steady leadership, and a deepcommitmenttocultural preservation and education to this leadership role,” Cousin’sstatementsaid.
“Sarita, along-standing and accomplished leader at the Foundation, has thefull confidenceofthe Boardand of staffleadership. Ourwork andplanning for the 2026 festival and our year-round programscontinue uninterrupted.”
Thechangeinfoundation leadership should not affect theupcoming JazzFest, which is booked, managed andproduced by Quint Davis’sFestivalProductions Inc.-New Orleansand AEG Presents, one of the world’s largest producers of live entertainment.
The foundation, governed by avolunteer,term-limited
life beyond the gym?
Iwish Icould reduce it to one moment, but every single day that Ihave the opportunity to work with my clients —who Iaffectionately call my “FitFam” —our training sessions don’tfeel like ajob to me. It’salmost like I’m afitness trainer and atherapist.So Iget to have those really intimate moments with
board, contracts with Davis and AEG to produce the festival. The foundation uses the millions of dollars in Jazz Festproceeds to fund an array of cultural andeducationalprograms andactivities, including this weekend’sfreeCongo Square Rhythms FestivalinArmstrong Park. The foundation also owns the broadcast license forcommunity radio station WWOZ 90.7 FM.
The foundation’sfull-time staffofapproximately18 employees, which was until recently overseen by Johnson,implementsthose programsand manages the foundation’sfacilitiesand archives.
The foundation enjoyed yearsofrelative stability with Don Marshall as executive director.Marshall, a New Orleans native with alonghistory of local arts management, became the Jazz &Heritage Foundation’s executive director in 2004.
Overthe next two decades, he navigated the board’sinternal politics and served as
abridge between the board and Jazz Fest’sproducers. He helped guide the foundation and the festival through the upheavals of Hurricane Katrina and the COVIDpandemic. After Marshall left, Johnsonwas hiredinearly 2025 with the newly created title of CEO.
The foundation board released astatementthis week on Johnson’sbehalf.
“It has been aprivilege to lead theNew Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival and Foundation through a periodofmeaningful transformation,”Johnson said in the statement. “I’m proud of what we have accomplished togetherover thepasttwo seasons and grateful to the Board, Transition Committee, staff, andcommunity partners whose partnership made this progress possible.I appreciate the Board’ssupport as Itransition to my next leadership role and remain confident in the Foundation’scontinued success.”
my clients in which we’re talking about morethan just working out and just how their exercise has improved their day.I hear their success stories of not how much weight they lost but how they’ve gone to the doctor and they’ve heard that success report about how their health is becoming better.Their lifestyle is changing. That —every day —just really,really warms my heart.
PROVIDED PHOTO
The Silver Creek Campground in Washington Parish has been soldfor $2.5 million to a NorthCarolina-based investment firm
BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer
Haleigh Bryant exhibited impeccable timing when she was an All-American gymnast for LSU, leaping and tumbling to titles and perfect 10s.
She didn’t lose that timing late in her career as she shifted from competing to coaching.
“I told Jay (Clark, LSU head coach) my sophomore or junior year that I wanted to coach college gymnastics,” Bryant said. “He said he would help me find a job. Jay has so many connections and I was open to moving.
“Then all the stars aligned.”
Bryant decided to return in 2025 for a fifth season, which the NCAA allowed because she started her career during the pandemic. At the same time, another former LSU great, Ashleigh Gnat, decided to leave coaching.
“Jay told me that summer (before her fifth season) that
BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer
Jay Johnson didn’t panic after Friday’s game LSU’s bats had gone quiet again, registering just two runs in eight innings against Kentucky ace Jaxon Jelkin, but his reaction to the performance was not one of despair Combined with the seven runs his team scored the next day, Johnson was feeling good about his attack before Sunday’s series finale.
“I’m not surprised we had a good day today,” Johnson said after Saturday’s game, “because I felt like there were some things in the game last night that were OK.”
But LSU’s offense was better than just OK at Alex Box Stadium on Sunday The Tigers
Bugs (Gnat) was looking to move on,” Bryant said “He asked me if I wanted to step into that role. That didn’t feel real.”
It became very real this past July, when Gnat officially stepped down and Clark picked Bryant to fill her role, joining the staff alongside husband and wife assistant coaches Garrett and Courtney McCool Griffeth.
As a first-year coach, Bryant has served as sort of an apprentice to the rest of the staff But she’s been a big asset as a recruiter because, well, she’s Haleigh Bryant. When she walks into a recruit’s living room, they’re excited,” Clark said.
“It’s been as seamless a transition as we could have asked for She just picked it right up.” Bryant and the rest of the LSU coaching staff lead the No. 2-seeded Tigers into NCAA regional action this week at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
When you’re sitting at 2-6 in league play and are playing a home series, getting swept is not an option. Fortunately for the struggling UL Ragin’ Cajuns, they didn’t.
The staff’s outstanding pitching returned just in time to help the Cajuns collect a much-needed 4-0 win over the Warhawks to avoid the sweep Sunday at Russo Park.
“I think I popped some pressure out of the bubble in this morning’s team meeting,” UL coach Matt Deggs said. “Just get back to having fun. We were a pretty loose crew there for several weeks, and to the point where I didn’t know what to expect.
“That’s what made us good and I think the more you win, the more expectation gets there We’re not a team that’s going to play well with that.”
The Cajuns improved to 18-10 overall and 3-6 in league play, while UL-Monroe now stands 16-13 and 6-3.
“That’s what we got today,” Deggs said. “The hitters were loose, we hit the ball hard and a lot of different guys contributed. I thought we played great defense again.”
BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer
Mickey Loomis has shown repeatedly that he loves trading up in the NFL draft. Imagine the New Orleans Saints general manager having even more resources to do so. A proposed rule change from the Cleveland Browns would allow teams to trade up to five years’ worth of draft assets instead of the three years that the league currently allows, with the goal to give teams greater flexibility and create a more active trade landscape. It’s unclear if the Saints support the measure, but we could soon find
LSU assistant coach Haleigh Bryant celebrates as gymnast Kailin Chio sticks the landing for
perfect
on the balance beam during a meet against Alabama on Feb 27 at the PMAC. STAFF FILE PHOTO
MICHAEL JOHNSON
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
11:30 a.m. Girls: McDonald’sAll American ESPNU
12:30
1:30
4p.m.WBIT:
6p.m.
8p.m. NCAATourn.: TCU vs. S. Carolina ESPN COLLEGE SOFTBALL
6p.m. S. Carolina at Mississippi St.SECN
6p.m. Phila. at Miami NBCSN,Peacock
7p.m.Chicago at San Antonio Peacock
8:30 p.m.Detroit at OKC NBCSN, Peacock NHL
6p.m.Pittsburgh at N.y.Islanders NHLN MEN’S SOCCER
10:50 a.m.Cyprus vs.Moldova FS2
10 a.m. WTAEarly Rounds Tennis
OU outslugs Tigers in series finale
BY JIM KLEINPETER
Contributing writer
Held withoutahomerun in the previous two games, Oklahoma cameout swinging against LSU on Sunday at Tiger Park.
While the No. 20 Tigers fought back gamely,the No. 5Sooners overpowered them with two homers in thefirstinning and four overall in an 8-4 victory to take the series.
LSU (23-12 overall, 4-8 SEC)hit three homers of itsown,including two by Kylee Edwards, but couldn’t overcome the nation’s leader in home runs, runs scored and batting average. Oklahoma freshman catcher Kendall Wells hit her national-best 26th homer over theright field fencefor a2-0 lead four pitches intothe game. Oneout later, Gabbie Garcia hit asolo shot,her 16th, to help the visitors go up 4-0before LSU’sfirst at-bat.
Oklahoma (34-2, 8-1) nowhas 133 dingers in 36 games.
“They’re areally good ball club,” Edwards said.“We knewthey were going to come out hitting. We had to do the same thing. Ithink we did. It’sthe game of softball; anybody can win on any givenday
“Weplayed our butts off. It was areally good series. Ourpitchers didfantastic. This is what happens on Sunday.Both sides hit really well. We have to comeout next weekend and do the same thing, and we’ll be fine.”
LSU got back-to-back solo homers from Edwards and Char Lorenz in the second inning to cut the deficit in half.
LSU starter Cece Cellura, who had shut out the Sooners for six inningsFriday nightbeforethe Sooners rallied, started and exited the game after Garcia’shomer, throwing11pitches.
Jayden Heavener,who threw a
two-hit victory Saturday,cooled off theSoonersoverthe next three innings butgaveupa three-run homerbyIsabella Emerlinginthe fifth.
Oklahoma’sElla Parker hit a solo shot in the sixth and Edwards answered with her secondhomer and third in two days.
Edwards is nowtiedwith Tori Edwards forthe team lead with six homers.
LSU came back withAlix Franklin’srun-scoring single in the seventh andhad thetying runondeck
But Parkermade afine running catch of Kylee Edwards’ sinking line drive in right fieldwithtwo runners on to endthe game.
“I’m proudofthe fight in our team,” LSU coachBeth Torina said. “Wescratched back andgot within one swing of it at the end, whichI thought was really cool.
“It’stough to getanoffense like that outmultiple times in multiple days.Ithought (Heavener) dida great job.She fought for us the wholeweekend.
LSU hadseven hits off starter
and winner Miali Gauchino but struck out 11 times, including four by preseason All-Americafirst baseman Tori Edwards.
“It’stoughtobeher sometimes,” Torina said. “She’s circledonevery scoutingreport.She sees pitches alittledifferent than everybody else andgetspitched differently. She’s hadsomereally good swings in the lastcouple of weeks. She’ll bounceback.”
Up next,the Tigers will play athree-gameseriesatMissouri starting at 6p.m.Thursday
UL’s season suffersablowinsweep at UL-Monroe
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
The good news is the roller coaster ride mighthavestopped forUL’ssoftballteam.
The bad news is it appears to have landed on the wrong side of that process after losing 7-5Sunday at UL-Monroetofinish aseries sweep. The Cajuns fall to 20-16 overall and 3-6 in Sun Belt play,while the Warhawks are now 22-17 and6-3. For the second straight day,UL started the scoring. Mia Liscano singled and scored on Kennedy Marceaux’sRBI single.
Marceaux finishedthe game 3-for-4 with adouble andthree RBIs.
Haley Hart followed withasac-
rifice fly for a2-0 lead.
Only,ULstarter Sage Hoover didn’tcomeclose to getting out of thefirst inning, giving up five runs on three hits, one walk and notrecording an out.
Hollie Thomas led the parade with athree-run double,before Elle Carter’s RBI single and Carson Janzky’sRBI groundout. She was replaced by Bethaney Noble,who gaveuptwo runs on four hits over three innings.
Julianne Tipton finished out the daywiththree perfect innings with three strikeouts.
It wasn’tenough,though, because UL’s offense couldn’tmount enoughproduction to catch up.
After Kelsey Kover homered in thethird, Marceaux deliveredan RBI double to makeit6-3.
Janzky retaliated withanother solo homer for a7-3 lead. UL tried to respond withRBI singles from Lily Knox and Marceaux in the sixth, but the Cajuns went quickly and easily in the seventh against ULM ace AshantiMcDade. McDade gother secondsaveof the season after allowing no runs on twohits, onewalk andone strikeout in 12/3 innings. Reliever Skylar Waggoner improvedto6-3 withthe win,allowingthreeruns (two earned) on five hits, one walk and two strikeouts in 41/3 innings. The Cajuns actually outhit ULM 10-7, including Brooke Otto’s 2-for-3 effort.
Email KevinFoote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com.
Belt series at UL-Monroe.
Elliottholds off Hamlin at Martinsville for1st winofseason
BY NATE RYAN Associated Press
MARTINSVILLE, VA.— Chase Elliott
outdueled Denny Hamlin at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, earning his first NASCAR CupSeries victory of theseason Elliott capitalized on ashrewd gamble by crew chiefAlanGustafson to pit the No. 9Chevrolet earlier than the other contenders. When the cautionflew on the 312th lap, Elliott was in second behind Hamlin andpittedwiththe rest of the lead-lap drivers aside from Ross Chastain, whotook the lead by staying on track Elliott took first from Chastain after arestart and led thefinal69 laps to win by 0.565 seconds over Hamlin’sNo. 11 Toyota,which faded in the final stage. Joey Logano finished third,followed by Ty Gibbs andWilliam Byron. Elliott, who has been voted NASCAR’smost popular driver for eight consecutive seasons, led 84 lapsindelivering the firstwin this year for Hendrick Motorsports. The winningest team in NASCAR history has arecord 31 victories at Martinsville.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CHUCK BURTON
Crew members performa pit stopondriver Denny Hamlin’scar during a NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday in Martinsville, Va
Hamlin, who has aseries-best six winsat Martinsville, started from the pole position and dominated,leading 292ofthe first317 laps. The Joe Gibbs Racing star got shuffled from the lead during apit stop sequence underayellow flag that began onthe 312th lap. Future deal
TylerReddick’s blazingstart to the Cup seasoncomes during a contract year for the23XI Racing
driver. Though he would be the hottest free agentinNASCARon the open market, Reddick hassaid he’scommittedtostaying at the team he joined three years ago. Afterwinning the pole position Saturday,Hamlin guaranteed that 23XI would sign Reddick to an extension soon.
“Tyler’s oneofthose guys that was very important for us to get our hands on him veryearly,” Hamlin said. “I thinkhe’slived up
Woodland wins firstPGA titlesincebrainsurgery
HOUSTON Gary Woodland won theHouston OpenonSunday, an emotional moment that seemed so improbable 30 months ago when he hadbrainsurgery,and even two weeks ago when he opened up about his struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder Woodland looked better than ever at Memorial Park, taking a one-shotlead intothe finalround and stretching it to seven shots until coasting home to atrophy that felt as big as his U.S. Open title at Pebble Beach in 2019. He closed with a3-under 67 to win by five shots over Nicolai Hojgaard. The gallery paused chanting his name so Woodland could roll in a5-foot parputt. He stretched both arms, exhaled and looked to the blue sky before his tears began pouring.
Three-time Vikings All-Pro DB Brownerdiesat65
EAGAN,Minn. Joey Browner,a three-timeAll-Pro defensive back whoplayed nine of his 10 NFLseasons with the Minnesota Vikings, has died, the team said. He was65. The Vikings announced Browner’sdeathSunday andsaid his family hadinformedthe team. A cause of death was not released. Anative of Warren, Ohio, who played at Southern Cal, Browner was selected by Minnesota with the 19th overall pick in the 1983 NFL draft. It wasthe first time the Vikings had used afirst-round pick on adefensive back.
Brownerplayedfor theVikings from 1983-1991 andfinishedhis career with37interceptions, the fifth mostinfranchise history.He also had 18 forced fumbles in 138 games forMinnesota.
CHICAGO Nico Hoerner and the Chicago Cubs finalized their $141 million, six-year contract Sunday that establishes the Gold Glove second baseman as afranchise cornerstone going forward. Hoerner could have become a freeagent after this season but instead chose to stay with the club that drafted him Thecontract runsfrom 2027-32 and includes deferred money Hoerner’slong-term deal comes days after All-Star center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrongagreedtoa $115 million, six-year contract. The28-year-old Hoerner was selected by the Cubs in the first round of the 2018 amateur draft outofStanford.Heisstarting his last season under a$35 million, three-year contract that wasfinalized in March 2023.
UNC suspends arena talks amid coaching search
CHAPEL HILL, N.C.— North Carolina is putting talks about the future homefor its men’s basketball program on hold.
to the expectations for us. We’re seeing it this year.He’sputting it all together,and our race cars are really fast,too.”
Hall of Fame nominees
TheNASCAR Hall of Fame unveiled alist of 15 candidates for the three-member class of 2027 that will include two from the ModernEra category and one from the Pioneer division. Among the new nominees are2014Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick,six-time ARCA champion Ray Elder,championship crew chief and engine builder Ernie Elliott, winning car owner RayFox and championship crew chief Herb Nab.
Some notableholdover nominees are CupSeries winners Jeff Burton andGreg Biffle,who was killed in aplane crash last December
Up next Afteranoff weekend forEaster,the NASCAR Cup Series will continue its short-track swing at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee on Sunday,April 12. Kyle Larson haswon twoofthe past three races at the0.533-mile oval, leading 411 of 500 laps in avictory last April.
The school said in astatement Sunday that it is suspending those discussions as officials focuson hiring anew coach after the firing of Hubert Davis. WRAL of Raleigh first reported newsofthe pause. The school is mulling whether to renovate the Smith Center,the program’s homesince January 1986. It also is considering building anew arena, potentially off the maincampus. The discussions have led to debates among fans andevenmembersofthe program, with retired Hall of Fame coach Roy Williamscoming out in support of renovating the center
Olympicchamp Semenya disappointed with IOC
CAPE TOWN Two-time Olympic champion runner Caster Semenya on Sundayexpressedher disappointment with IOC President Kirsty Coventry over the decision to ban transgender womenfrom competing in women’sevents at the Olympics. Semenya, whoisSouth African, said sheexpected more from afemale leader and fellow African like Coventry,who is from Zimbabwe.
“Personally,for her as aleader, she’sanAfrican, I’m sure she understands how we as Africans, we are coming from, as aglobal South, you cannot control genetics,” Semenya said.
The International Olympic Committee’sdecision also restricts athletessuch as Semenya with medical conditions known as differencesinsex development,orDSD.
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
LSU shortstop Kylee Edwards, left, high fivesa teammate while celebrating her home runagainst Oklahoma in the second inning on Sunday at TigerPark. Edwards hit twohomers in the loss.
STAFFPHOTO By BRAD KEMP
UL softball coachAlyson Habetz’s Ragin’Cajuns were swept in aSun
had 16 hits and came back from aseven-run deficit and afour-run deficit to take down Kentucky 1710. The victory handed them their first series win in Southeastern Conference play
“(Kentucky) makes it hard, man,” Johnson said. “They’renot coming in here and just going, ‘Hey,it’sLSU, so we’re going to give it to them.’ It’snot how this thing goes.
“And so if you don’tthrow punches back, and I’m not talkingabout scoring runs, I’m talking about having your manhood challenged and responding, you’re going to lose. And we’ve lost and haven’tresponded that way.Today,you can’t ask for abetter response.”
LSU went 8for 20 with runners in scoring position and 10 for 26 with runners on base. Senior Chris Stanfield went 4for 5witha double. Fifth-year senior Seth Dardar had three hits and drove in four runs. Junior Jake Brownand sophomore Derek Curiel had two hits apiece. Curiel also hit ahome run
“We’ve gone down alot in certain games this year,and we’vekindof laid down,and we kind of didn’t have that fight back,” Curielsaid.
“Today,we’re sickand tired of it. We’re not going to do that anymore.”
There were plenty of game-defining hits. Sophomore John Pearson hit athird-inning grandslam that cut LSU’sdeficit from sixto two. Dardar blasted athree-run homer in the sixththatgaveLSU its first lead at 11-10, flipping his bat at least two stories into theair after smashing it 435 feet
“I grew up watching LSUmyentire life, and it means alot to me to be in astadium in front of all those fans,” Dardar said. “So when Iwas
CAJUNS
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UL willnextplayat4 p.m. TuesdayatMcNeese, before headingto James Madison on Thursday
“I just need to back off alittle bit with my expectation,” Deggssaid
“This is atight-knit family in here, and they want to do good. They want to please, and look, sometimes, you can try too hard.”
The successful salvage began with starting pitcher Ty Roman back in the weekend rotation
The original Friday nightstarter handled the midweek starterrole andgot the ballrolling with41/3 shutout innings, giving up four hits, no walks and striking out seven.
“His fastballcommand has been really good,” Deggs said ofRoman “Ifyou watch, almost every time he went 1-0 today,hecame back with astrike …ifitgot to 2-0, then astrike, so we weren’tfalling behind. “Then he’shad alot morecommand of the breaking pitch,which hasbeen good.” He left with the bases loaded and one out in the fifthand Cajuns’ closer Cody Braschhandled
STARS
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The regional begins at 2p.m Wednesday withafirst-round meet between Air Force and Nebraska. The winner advancestoSession II of Thursday’ssecond round at 7p.m. to face LSU, No. 15 Clemson and Auburn.
The top two teams from LSU’s side of the bracket advance to face the top two teams from Thursday’s 1p.m. session between No. 7Stanford, No. 10 Michigan, NorthCarolina and Utah State in the regional final. Thetop two teamsfrom that meet, set for 5p.m. Saturday,move on to the NCAA Championships in Fort Worth, Texas Anative of Cornelius, North Carolina, Bryant committed to LSUasaneighth-grader and wrapped her competitivecareer as arguably the greatest gymnast in LSU history.Atwo-time NCAA individual champion and fivetime SEC individual champion, Bryant, 24,has more All-American honors (33)and perfect 10s (18) than any Tiger gymnast. But would her success as acompetitormake her asuccessful coach, especially now thatshe’s coaching many of her former teammates?
“It’scertainly been different, but it’snice,” LSU juniorKylie Coen said. “It was nice to have her asa teammate and being able to confideinher.But it’salso been nice to have her as acoach, becauseshe knows whatwe’ve gone through.
“If we’re havingahard time, Ican go to her and let her know
rounding third, going home and hearing thecrowd cheer for me, it just meant the world to me.”
Histheatrics starteda shouting match between thetwo dugouts. At first, Kentucky coach Nick Mingione was,presumably,upset with thebat flip. Then awarning was issued to LSU by the umpires about Dardar’sflair for the dramatic, and that somehow led to more shouting fromJohnsonthat he directed toward theKentucky dugout.
“His fastball command has been really good. If you watch, almost every time he went 1-0today, he came back with a strike…ifitgot to 2-0, then astrike, so we weren’tfalling behind.”
MATT DEGGS,ULcoach, on pitcherTy Roman
the rest. First, he struck out two straight batters to end thatthreat andthenfinisheditout.
“It felt really good,” Brasch said of getting out of the fifth.“It was eight straightsliders. Ihave never done that before, but it just felt good out of the hand. The team picked up after that, so Iwas so thankful that Iwas readytodo that.”
Brasch continued his stellar season, improving his record to 3-1 with42/3 shutout innings on three hits, one walk and five strikeouts.
“Honestly,itwas about throwing strikes andlettingthem get themselves out,”hesaid. “That seemed to work pretty good.”
Senior Zach Yorke was also so upset withthe Wildcats that pitching coach Nate Yeskie needed to hold him back.
“I thought they were going to kick (Dardar) out of the gamebecauseIguess he bat-flipped it.And, Itoldyou guys yesterday, all this is going to happen every weekend,” Johnson said. “AndsoIjustmotioned the dugout and Iwas like, ‘Seth, flip it lower.Flip it lower.’
“That was my instruction at that
time,and then the (Kentucky) pitching coach wants to fight me, whatever.”
It was the boiling point of aseries that was emotionally charged from start to finish. EvenonSaturday,Yeskie was shouting at the Kentucky (21-6, 5-4SEC) dugout after junior Jake Brownthrew out arunner at hometoend an inning.
“Another weekend in the SEC,” Johnson quipped. On the mound Sunday,LSU (19-
Brasch was ready for an extended outing.
“I knew beforehand,”hesaid.
“Coach Sandy (Taylor Sandefur)
came to me before the game and said, ‘Hey,we’re going to give you theball about the sixth inning, and if youfeelgood, you’re going to
what’s been going on. At thesame time, she can give me thecoach’s perspective and what they expect outofus.”
Whatwill be expected of LSU after another stellar regular season is to advance to nationals for thefourth straight year —especially since the Tigersare competing ontheir home floor.But Bryant believes they areready to handle it.
“Thisteamreally is something special,”she said.“It’s so importanttohave 21 girls who all want the same goal. For some teams,
that’sharder to create. That started back in August.”
Bryant hopes that acareer that started as an assistant coach at LSU will lead hertothe opportunitytobeahead coach one day Does shedream of beingLSU’s coach? Bryant doesn’twant to thinkthat far down theroad.
“I’mstayingpatient and just being in the moment,” Bryant said. “Learning from Jay and Courtney andGarrett. If Ibecome ahead coach at LSUoranother school, they’re thebestand Iwant to learn everything Ican.”
10, 4-5) couldn’tstop shooting itself in thefootfor most of theafternoon. The Tigers’ pitchers walked 10 batters and hit twoothers. They allowed Kentucky to score its first three runs on just one hit, and four of the free passestheyissuedresulted in runs.
Redshirt juniorright-hander Gavin Guidry started the game for LSU, but only lasted11/3 innings. He walked four batters, hit another and gave up six earned runs, raising his ERA to 6.64 on the season. Sophomore left-hander Santiago Garcia replaced Guidry in the second inning and allowed two inherited runners to score before a third run came across in the third. By the end of the top of the third, LSU trailed 7-0. “I was like, ‘Man, Iguess everybody wenttothe concert last night and went to bed at 4a.m. and did whoknows what,” Johnson said “And didn’tgive arear end about today.’ ” LSU’sstruggles on thebump continued into the fifth, when sophomoreright-hander Mavrick Rizy walked twobatters despiterecordingjust one out. Redshirt sophomore right-hander DevenSheerin replaced him after the second free pass, but Sheerin alloweda twoout, two-run double that stretched Kentucky’slead from one to three. He then surrendered asingle that gave the Wildcats a10-6 advantage. The Tigers’ pitching stafffinally regathered themselves after that. Theydidn’tallowarun after the fifthinning, as Sheerin, sophomore left-handerDanny Lachenmayer and fifth-year senior Grant Fontenot tosseda shutout the rest of the way LSU faces Southern on Tuesday in the final game of its nine-game home stand. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be available to stream on SEC Network+
finish it out.’ Iwas like, ‘Sounds good.’”
That meantitwas up to theCajuns’offensetoproduce enough runs to win.
As it turned out, that took place in the fourth inning when Rigoberto Hernandez led off with asingle and scored on Lee Amedee’sRBI single.
“Oh, that felt really good,” Amedee said of the clutch hit. “I wasjust really happy to get us going.”
Jayce LaCavaled off the fifth with asolo home run to left for a 2-0 lead.
Amedee wasatitagain in the sixth with aleadoff triple. He quickly scored on aNoah Lewis double andpinch-hitter Maddox Mandino later scored on abasesloaded walkfor the fourth run.
“It felt good,” Amedeesaidofthe triple. “I haven’treally,honestly, thewhole team,we’vekind of been going through it. It was just nice to get somehitsgoing today,string something together,get awin.
“It felt like we got alot more than seven hits today,honestly.We were hitting alot of balls hard. We just played loose today.”
Email KevinFoote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com.
SAINTS
Continued from page1C
Saints’ latest offseason developments,including why New Orleans added another quarterback in Zach Wilson. This has been abusy stretch for Moore, who has traveled the country while hitting the pro day circuit. The second-year coach has been spotted at the University of Miami, Ohio State and Texas Tech. Moore, of course, will be tight-lipped about the team’s draft plans, but the availability should provide someinsight into what thecoach hasatleast observed.Itwas at this time last year that Moore confirmed the Saints were doing their homeworkonquarterbacks, amonth beforethe Saints draftedTyler Shough.
Otherrulechanges
Among the other more notable topics to be discussed by owners at themeetings centeraround whether teamsshouldbeable to declareanonsidekickatany time.The league had changed the rule over the past few years, with the most recent change coming last year,when teamswere again allowed to declare an onside kick at anytimewhentrailing. The tweaks, however,eliminated the possibilityofany surprise whichthe Saints used famously to their advantage in Super Bowl XLIV when calling “ambush.” The latest proposed change won’t bring back the element of surprise,but it at leastgives
teamsthe option to be aggressive.The Saintsattemptedtwo onside kicks in 2025, recovering one. Thelatter recovery ledtoa dramatic finish in aloss to the MiamiDolphins, whenNew Orleans almost pulled off the upset. Another hot item to be mulled over is whether the league will be able to centralize aspects of officiating in case the league has to use replacement officials next season. With the NFLand the referees’ association unable to come together on anew collective bargainingagreement,the league has proposed allowing the league’s officiating department to “correct clear and obvious misses made by on-fieldofficials” —but only in case of awork stoppage. The league last used replacementofficials in 2012. Othernuggets
Theleaguemeetingsalsogive reporters agreat chance to speak with other coaches around the league. That should provide further insight into the Saints’ batch of free agents. JacksonvilleJaguars coach Liam Coen, forinstance, will be able to speak to what running back Travis Etienne can add, while Buffalo Bills coach Joe Brady can share what he learned when working with guard David Edwards. New York Jetscoach Aaron Glenn is also of interest after the Jets luredawayveteran linebacker Demario Davis. Elsewhere, Saints owner Gayle Benson is expected to attend theleaguemeetings afteran overseas trip to the Vatican and France.
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
LSU second baseman SethDardar fires theball to first inning after stepping on second to tag Kentucky left
fielder Will Marcy out in the second inning on Sunday at Alex Box Stadium
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
LSU gymnast Kailin Chio hugs assistant coach Haleigh Bryant after finishing her routine on the balance beamduring the PodiumChallenge on March 1at the Raising Cane’s River Center
STAFFPHOTO By BRAD KEMP
UL starting pitcher Ty Romandelivers apitch against UL-Monroe during their game Sunday at Russo Park. UL won4-0
Lendeborg leads Michigan past Vols into Final Four
BY JAY COHEN AP sportswriter
CHICAGO Yaxel Lendeborg
scored 27 points, Elliot Cadeau had 10 assists and Michigan rolled into the Final Four, overwhelming Tennessee for a 95-62 victory in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday Morez Johnson Jr added 12 points for top-seeded Michigan, which posted its 11th victory this season by at least 30 points. Aday Mara had 11 points and blocked two shots in the Midwest Region final.
Making the most of its size and athleticism on both sides of the court, Michigan (35-3) advanced to its first Final Four since 2018 and ninth overall. Next up is a showdown with Arizona in Saturday’s national semifinals.
“We always wanted to play against them, that team,” Lendeborg said. “They’re a really, really good team, so it’s going to be a super fun matchup.”
Under second-year coach
Dusty May who took Florida Atlantic to the Final Four in 2023 the Wolverines became the first school to win at least four games in an NCAA tourney by double digits while scoring at least 90 points in each. Lendeborg, who was named
the region’s Most Outstanding Player, was 10 for 19 from the field He became the first Michigan player to score at least 23 points in three consecutive NCAA Tournament games since Juwan Howard did it in four straight in 1994.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored 21 points on 8-of-22 shooting for Tennessee (25-12), which lost in the Elite Eight for the third straight year under Rick Barnes.
The 71-year-old coach reached his only Final Four in 2003 with
Texas.
“We certainly know what it takes to get here,” Barnes said. “Now we’ve got to figure out getting through to the next level, and it’s on this day, you’ve got to really be at your best.”
Felix Okpara finished with 10 points and seven rebounds for the Volunteers, who shot just 32% (24 of 76) from the field. Each team had 42 rebounds — a major problem for a Tennessee team that usually enjoys an advantage on the glass.
forward Sarah Strong scored 21 points, Blanca Quiñonez added 20 and defending national champion UConn beat Notre Dame 70-52 on Sunday in the Fort Worth Regional 1 final, sending coach Geno Auriemma and the Huskies to their 25th Final Four in the women’s NCAA Tournament.
The Huskies (38-0), who have won 54 games in a row, clinched the first spot for the Final Four in Phoenix. They will be going for their 13th national championship. Azzi Fudd, UConn’s other firstteam AP All-America pick added 13 points and four assists.
Hannah Hidalgo had 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Fighting Irish (25-11), plus three more steals to increase her NCAA single-season record to 202 and single NCAA tourney mark to 29. But she also had five turnovers, the first time in her 10 NCAA tourney games with more turnovers than steals. The ninth NCAA tourney meeting between the Huskies and the Irish was their first with a spot in the Final Four on the line. They
had both made it that far the first eight times they met in March Madness, the last in 2019 when Notre Dame won a semifinal game over UConn and then lost to Baylor in the title game.
SACRAMENTO 2 REGIONAL No. 1 UCLA 70, No. 3 DUKE 58: In Sacramento, California, Lauren Betts had 23 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks to help UCLA rally from a rare halftime deficit and beat Duke, advancing to the women’s Final Four for the second straight season. The top-seeded Bruins will play either Texas or Michigan in Phoenix on Friday in the national semifinals. UCLA is two wins away from the program’s first NCAA title.
Third-seeded Duke tested UCLA (35-1) like few teams had done this season. The Bruins struggled to get going offensively or contain the Blue Devils (27-9), who reached their second straight Elite Eight on a buzzerbeating 3-pointer by Ashlon Jackson against LSU in the Sweet 16. Taina Mair scored 21 points to lead Duke, which also lost in a regional final last year
SCOREBOARD
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ERIN HOOLEy
From left, Michigan’s Roddy Gayle, yaxel Lendeborg and Elliot Cadeau celebrate during the first half of an Elite Eight NCAA Tournament game against Tennessee Sunday in Chicago.
A new journey
Stephen Colbert goes from late night to ‘Lord of the Rings’ with new movie script co-write
LOS ANGELES Stephen Colbert, with the end of his late-night series less than two months away, already has a new gig lined up: co-writing the script for an upcoming “Lord of the Rings” movie.
BY EMILY
Guinness World Record for longest line of cheesesteaks is set at Philadelphia International Airport
BY STEPHANIE FARR
The Philadelphia Inquirer
(TNS)
PHILADELPHIA Philadelphia
“steaked” its claim on the sandwich that bears its name by setting the Guinness World Record for longest line of cheesesteaks — 1,291 lined up end to end — at Philadelphia International Airport on March 24, National Cheesesteak Day
“We are the world champions of cheesesteaks, baby!” yelled MarketPlace PHL operating partner Clarence LeJeune as he accepted the award on behalf of the airport.
Wit or witout the title, there’s no question Philly is the cheesesteak capital of the world, but now that we have the receipts, nobody better start any beef.
As a live DJ played bangers like Daft Punk’s “Harder Better Faster, Stronger” and Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” in the connector between Terminals B and C, more than 100 airport employees and volunteers stuffed the foot-long Amoro-
Assemblers prepare the cheesesteaks at Philadelphia International Airport to attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the longest line of cheesesteaks.
so’s rolls with 990 pounds of Philly’s Best Steak, then drizzled 225 pounds of Cooper Sharp cheese sauce all over them.
On hand to help set the record were Kosuke and Tomomi Chujo, owners of the Tokyo bar Nihonbashi Philly who have gone viral for the
authentic cheesesteaks they make in Japan and for their love of all things
Philly
“We came just for this event We have to join, otherwise we can’t say we’re a cheesesteak restaurant,” Tomomi Chujo said.
As proud as she was to participate in the world record, Chujo — who wore a green baseball cap that said “BIRDS” and socks that read “PHL Cheesesteak” — was equally proud of experiencing a different Philly rite of passage on this trip.
“I got a PPA ticket! I am so happy!” she said, marking perhaps another record for the first time anyone has ever been happy with the Philadelphia Parking Authority
In the hour or so it took to create the cheesesteaks, a drone continually flew over the assembly line as travelers from the around the world stopped to ask about the commotion and the placards set up that said: “HISTORY IN PROGRESS.”
ä See RECORD, page 6C
We want to be here for this moment so when we visit other cities we can talk trash. ... Well, we got the world record. We have the pictures and evidence. We were here today and Philly made history.”
KALA JOHNSTONE
Mark Ruffalo’s Matt “Matty” Flamhaff, is executive producing the project.
“People We Meet on Vacation” star Emily Bader and Logan Lerman, known for “Oh, Hi!” and “Perks of Being a Wallflower,” will star in the reboot.
Peter Jackson, the visionary filmmaker who adapted author J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic fantasy for the big screen in the early aughts, teased “very special partner” Colbert’s involvement in a video posted to social media Tuesday In the post, Jackson video calls Colbert, who says he’s “pretty happy” about the screenwriting role. Colbert, famously a fan of “The Lord of the Rings,” began his part of the video by expressing his love for Tolkien’s books and Jackson’s films before noting his interest in earlier chapters of “The Fellowship of the Ring.” He said that material could make for “its own story that could fit into the larger story.”
The TV personality and screenwriter, 61, said coming up with an idea for a new movie was a family affair that also involved his son, screenwriter Peter McGee. “It took me a few years to scrape my courage into a pile to give you a call,” he told Jackson, “but about two years ago, I did. You liked it enough to talk to me about it.”
Colbert said he and Jackson further discussed the project with veteran screenwriter Philippa Boyens and presented it to production company NewLine and its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery Boyens, along with Jackson and screenwriter Fran Walsh, oversaw the “LOTR” and The Hobbit” film trilogies.
“I could not be happier to say that they loved it,” Colbert continued.
Colbert said he was worried he wouldn’t be able to balance both the new “LOTR” film and his series, “but it turns out I’m going to be free starting the summer.”
Why’s that? CBS, the home network of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” announced in 2025 its plans to cancel the latenight talker after more than a decade The show’s final episode is set to air May 21.
Since news of his show’s cancellation, Colbert has been a vocal critic of CBS parent company Paramount Global, notably slamming the company’s “big fat bribe” of $16 million in settlement payments to President Donald Trump because of CBS News’ edits to a “60 Minutes” Kamala Harris interview He had also referenced the company’s merger with David Ellison’s Skydance Media. Ellison is the son of Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison. Though the upcoming end of “The Late Show” in May seemed to signal a split between its host and Paramount, it seems he’ll be working under the Paramount umbrella once again. In February, Ellison’s Paramount Skydance emerged victorious in a competitive bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, besting Netflix. Deadline reports that the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger will be in full swing before the end of the year Warner Bros. Discovery revealed in May
that it was
See COLBERT,
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER/ TNS PHOTOS By ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ
Michael Empric, adjudicator with Guinness World Records, inspects the construction of cheesesteaks at Philadelphia International Airport on Tuesday.
BY ALEXANDRA DEL ROSARIO Los Angeles Times (TNS)
Keep dancingtopreservememory
Dear Doctors: In regardstothe phenomenon of musicand cognition, multiple studies show folks who dance are less likely to develop dementia. This presumably takes the music component and addsmemory,movement and doing something to abeat. Every timeI see an article on dementia, they neglect to mention dancing Dear reader: We recently discussed arecent study about dementia risk and music. The researchers found alower incidence of dementiaamongpeople who listen to music every day This was compared with those who didn’tlisten to music on a daily basis. The study also found thatthe musicgroup did betteron memory and cognitive teststhan thenon-musicgroup.
Dr.Elizabeth Ko Dr.Eve Glazier ASK THE DOCTORS
Thebenefits of music for cognition havebeen making headlines forseveralyears. But we agree with you that the effects of dance on cognition have been mostly absent.Asreaders here areaware, regular physical exercise has aprotective effect on memory.But thediscipline needed to start moving and stay moving often is achallenge.
Dance is both social and fun, so it seemslogical it could help people to get off the couch when the gym might not That brings us to thestudy about dance we think you are referring to. Researchers conducted this study at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The findings were published in 2003 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The researchers analyzed five years of physical and mental healthdata. They gathered data from 469 adults over age 75. They found that many physical activities correlated to improved cognitive healthoutcomes, though dancing was the best of them all. Participantswho danced regularly had a76% lower risk of developing
Miss Mannersinmiddleschool
Dear Miss Manners: Iteach seventh gradeinasuburban school. Ihavenoticed an increasingly unsettling trend as Iwalk around the room to check on students:Nobody says “yes, please” or “no, thankyou” anymore.
Ihave tried to remind them in many differentways what the polite response is, but it never really seems to stick. Finally,Idecided to invoke Miss Manners. I told them all aboutyou and how Miss Manners, who is areal person, would like to remind them the proper way to respondtoquestions. Only by takingonthe persona of someone else have Iseen any success in their
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responses. What would you say to 12-year-oldsto impress upon them how important this is?
dementia in the five years of the study compared to thepeople who didn’tdance. The researchers proposed that themultipledisciplines involved in dance activate abroad network of brain regions at once. Dance involves aerobics, coordination, agility and rhythm.It also involves flexibility,balance, memoryand social interaction. In asingle dance, you are constantly learning, adjusting and adapting. In,say,anevening of dancing, you challengeboth brain and body in away that is uniquely complex and rigorous. And over years, thesustained challenges of dancing may have aprotective effect on the brain. Still, thereare someimportant caveats to keep in mind. The
first is that this wasanobservational study.Although it can flag aconnection between abehavior and an outcome, it cannot offer proof.The other factor is time. Dementia often takes manyyears to develop. The 76% lower risk that wascited applies only to the five-year span of the study.A longer follow-up might have had different results. That said, the study clearly showsthe potential benefits of this lively activity.So, may we have the next dance?
Sendyour questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla. edu, or write: Ask theDoctors, c/oUCLA HealthSciences Media Relations, 10880 Wilshire Blvd.,Suite1450, Los Angeles, CA, 90024.
Unpleasant assignment bothersupbeatemployee
Judith Martin MISS MANNERS
Thesigns seemedtotake on adual meaning given thatitwas thefirstday Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were visibly deployed in theairport at the behest of the Trump administration as TSA wait times skyrocket acrossthe country due to thepartial government shutdown. But the wait times weren’t bad at thePhilly airport Tuesday.Desiree Cruz,33, of Los Angeles, who was flying home from aweddingin Philly,arrived several hours before her flight but only hadtowaitfive minutesto get through her TSA PreCheck screening. She was ecstatic to stumble upon the record-setting event as she killed time in the airport, especially since she hadn’tgrabbeda cheesesteak while she was in town.
“This is extraordinary! This is surreal!”she said. “I was just thinkingabout getting acheesesteak and nowI am about to witnesshistory.” Once the assembly was done, Guinness World Record official adjudicator Michael Empric —who was dressed in avery official Guinness World Record blue blazer and armed with avery official blue Guinness World Record clipboard— walked the line with his tally counter to make sureall the cheesesteaks meatexpectations.
Every steak wasrequired to be on aroll 30 centimeters long and had to be
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In case youmissedit(or were living under arock in 2004), our former Los Angeles Times film critic Manohla Dargis wrote of the film: “Another iterationonthe apparently indestructible body-switching premise, ‘13 Going On 30’ closely adheres to the essential gimmick and learning curve introduced to superior effect in the 1988 hit ‘Big.’ “After adisastrous birthday party and afoolish wish to become ‘30, flirty and
Gentle reader: “Don’t blame me”?
Sorry.The idea of frightening children into basiccourtesy scares Miss Manners. Butsince you say itworks, she willtry to get over that.
Surely seventh graders are capableof understanding that people need to get along with one another,rather than living in aconstant state of alarm, suspecting that others mean us harm. Unfortunately,they have been taught to evaluate online communications with that cynical approach. But inreal life, we have
filled with chopped beef and “somecheese product.” Each cheesesteak also had to touch the next one,end to end, resulting in atotal length of about 1,271 feet.
Therecord-setting attempt wasnot without its misteaks. Whenannouncinghis findings,Empricnoted that a few holes in the line were filled with partial pieces of cheesesteaks.While that very Philly workaround did not disqualifythe attempt, those partial steaks were deductedfrom thetotal Philly’scheesesteak line was afirst-time category creator,according to Empric. As such, Guinness World Records set abaseline of 500 cheesesteaks to be considered for therecord, a bar Philly easily beat While othershave claimed to set GuinnessWorld Recordsfor longest lineof cheesesteaks —like the Main StreetGrill in Lewiston, Idaho, whichmade a 722-foot line of cheesesteaks in 2023 —they either didn’t followthrough, didn’tmake the cut, or never submitted their paperwork to officially beconsidered aGuinness World Record holder, Empric said This isn’tthe first time a massive lineofcheesesteaks has been assembled in Philadelphia, either.In2015, Steve’sPrince of Steakscreated a480-foot cheesesteak for the Philadelphia Cheesesteak Festival, and in 2021, morethan adozen Philly restaurateurs andestablishments workedtogether to build a510-foot line of cheesesteaks that ran three blocks through theItalian Market.
thriving’ (some alliterative propaganda she’sread in a fashion magazine), Jenna wakes one morningtodiscover that she’smetamorphosed into an older,taller, somewhat curvier versionof herself.Now playedbyGarner,the wild-eyed teenager comes face to face with a wish fulfillment of alifethat comes with adesigner Manhattan apartment,anexecutive position at aslick women’s magazine,a hockey-star boyfriend who likes to strip to Vanilla Ice, and rowupon rowofdesignershoes.”
While mum’sthe wordon plot specifics,the scriptfor the reboot is by Hannah
developeda codetoindicatethatweare notbullies making demands, but rather that we harborgoodwill towardothers. “Please” meansthat, although they are asking forsomething, compliancewould be appreciated. “Thank you” expressesthatappreciation And now Miss Manners must express herappreciation to you forinsisting on teachinga skill that will contribute to those children’ssuccess.
Send questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners. com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick,1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.
Given thatTuesday was thefirst official cheesesteak Guinness World Record attemptfor Philly,twin sisters Kala and Maya Johnstone, who are food influencers and the owners of FoodChasers’ Kitchen, came from Glenside to witness it.
“Wewanttobehere for this moment so when we visit other cities we can talk trash, like Baltimore, who is giving us hell talking about they got thebetter cheesesteak,” Kala Johnstone said. “Well, we got theworldrecord. We have thepictures and evidence. We were here today and Philly made history.”
Afinalrequirement to obtain theGuinness World Record,accordingtoEmpric, was thatall of the cheesesteaksmust be donated or consumed on site. In accordance, cheesesteaks were freely givenout to participants, volunteers, and airport workers, while others were hand-delivered to Transportation Security Administration employees, whohavegonewithout a paycheck since the partial shutdown began last month
Peter Ciarrocchi, CEO of Chickie’s&Pete’s, whose four airport restaurants provided the kitchen equipment and prep space for theevent said he loved watching so many people work together to make this record areality
“Breaking the world record is always awesome,”he said. “But oneofmyfavorite things today was feeding the TSA with thecheesesteaks, because this cityisthe City of Brotherly Love and these people are working without pay.Withoutthem, nobody can be in this airport.”
Marks, whopennedand directed “Mark, Mary,&Some Other People,” with revisions by FloraGreeson, who wrote “The High Note.”
Oncenews of the reboot broke online, social media chatter picked up, with fans speculatingwhich eras the film may be setin. If, like theoriginal, the protagonist wakesupasa 30-year-old in today’smodern world, some worry theflick won’tbeas lighthearted as the original. One user on Threads said, “The conceptofa13Going on 30 wherea teenager in 2009 nowwakes up in THIS reality in her 30s feelslike horror not romcom.”
Dear Harriette: Iaminthe creativeindustry andthoroughlyenjoy my job! It offers newexperiences and achancetolearn hands-on skills in a safeand supportive environment.The workplace is comfortable and fosters open communication withoutretaliation.Iwas given a task that Idon’t particularly likebut that requires enthusiasm to complete. There are others in ourorganization who would fit the task betterand have fun doing it. Ifeel likeIwould be of better use in another role;however,Iwant to be areliable
worker. Otherthanthis, I am proficient in allmyroles andconsistently bring my A game to the office. Iamina place thatpeople enjoyand would want to remain awelcoming presencetomy colleagues. Should I continue to fake the funk or risk letting ourlead manager down? —Tough Task Dear ToughTask: It sounds like your job is close to ideal. It is rare that an employee has no tasks that are undesirable. It is common that you would have at least one duty that isn’tyour favorite. What you can do is change your attitude. Tack-
le it with gusto. Figure out how to do it extremely well and as quickly as possible so that it doesn’tbecome a source of anxiety foryou. Youmay also want to look around to see if anyone is struggling with atask that you find appealing. You could speak to your manager and offer to swap tasks, pointing out that you think each of you might be more efficient with the redistribution of duties.
Sendquestions to askharriette@ harriettecole.com or c/oAndrewsMcMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St.,Kansas City,MO 64106.
Getlipstickstainsout of clothes
Dear Heloise: How do Iget lipstick out of my favorite T-shirt? —Kay E., in Frankfort, Kentucky Kay,rub thearea with cold cream or shortening. Afterward, place afew drops of dishwashing liquid on the area and let soap rest there for 10 minutes. Next,hand-wash with club soda. There are also stain-removing cloths that are commercially sold and usually found in the laundry detergent section of your grocery store. Heloise Silencingunknown callers Dear Heloise: In responseto
ByThe Associated Press
the person whoanswered her phone every time it rang, she can go to her settings and scroll to the “phone” tab. Go to “screen unknown callers” and check “silence.” She will only get calls from her contacts this way. Other calls will be visible, and she can return them only if she chooses. Itake this feature off if I’mexpecting acall from adoctor or an appliance delivery.Otherwise, this saves alot of time and annoyance. —Jenny R., via email Jenny,there is aserious problem with this method.
Anew doctor or pharmacy might try to contact someone whoforgot to add these numbers to their contact list. People get new phone numbers all the timeand might not be able to call afriend to let them know that they changed phone numbers. Asituation like this has its pros and cons. —Heloise Oniontears
Dear Heloise: Here’sanother tip foravoiding tears when chopping onions: Just stand at arm’slength while you’re chopping. Carole F.,via email Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.
Today is Monday, March 30, the89th day of 2026. There are 276 days left in the year
Todayinhistory: On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously wounded by John Hinckley Jr.outside aWashington, D.C.,hotel. Also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady,Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy and aDistrict of Columbia police officer,Thomas Delahanty. (Hinckley would be found not guilty by reason of insanity and held at a psychiatric hospital until his supervised release in 2016 James Brady died in 2014 as aresult of his injuries.)
Also on this date:
In 1822, Florida became a United States territory
In 1867, U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with
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heading back to theShire with two new films. The first is “The Hunt for Gollum,” starring and directed by “Lord of theRings” alum Andy Serkis.
Russia to purchase the territory of Alaska for$7.2 million, adeal ridiculed by critics as “Seward’sFolly” but later recognized as advantageous to the U.S.
In 1870, the 15th Amendmenttothe U.S. Constitution, which prohibited denying citizens the right to vote and hold office on the basis of race, was declared in effect by Secretary of State Hamilton Fish.
In 1939, Detective Comics issue No.27was released, featuring the first appearance of the superhero character Batman.
In 1975, as the Vietnam Warneared its end, Communist forces occupied the city of Da Nang.
In 2009, heavily armed militants stormed apolice training academynear Lahore, Pakistan, taking hostages and killing cadets and others before being overpowered after several hours. Authorities reported at least 20 deaths, including several attackers. In 2023, aManhattan grand jury voted to indict Donald Trumponcharges involving payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter,the first ever criminal case against aformer U.S. president. Today’sbirthdays: Actor John Astin is 96. Actordirector Warren Beatty is 89. Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry Lucas is 86. Musician Eric Clapton is 81. Actor Paul Reiser is 70. Rap artist MC Hammer is 64.
According to Deadline,the “LOTR” project involving Colbertistentatively titled “The Lordofthe Rings: Shadow of the Past” and is setmorethana decade after the death of central hobbitFrodo.Fellowhobbits
“Sam, Merry and Pippin set out to retrace the first steps of their adventure” while a new generation seeks to unearth a“long-buriedsecret.” NewsofColbert’s screenwriting gig spurred arange of reactions on social media among the dedicated “Lord of the Rings” fanbase, with some users excited forthe late-night host and others expressing their disappointment with his involvement.
Hints from Heloise
Harriette Cole SENSE AND SENSITIVITy
ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Base your decisions on the time and energy it will take to complete what you set out to do. Be cautious not to take on more than you can handle or projects that are unrealistic.
tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Make the first move; start conversations, address matters that concern you and take care of your backlog of updates, cancellations and deadweight. Choose comfort, peace and love.
GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Choosebrainover brawn to fight your battles. Knowledge is your path to solidarity and innovative suggestions, and following through with actions will put you in the spotlight.
cAncER (June 21-July 22) Lean in, take the lead, say what's on your mind and live up to your word. The sky is the limit when you focus on what's important to you; rewards will follow.
LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Choose discipline over distraction. Avoid risks that can damage your reputation, position or financial well-being. Adopt a positive attitude and work diligently.
VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) You'll dazzle everyone with your words of wisdom. Focus on the effect you will have on others, and offer positivity and support to all those you encounter.
LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Follow your passion. Use your skills to work on a project that's suited to the changing times.
Review your relationships and stick with the people who have made a positive impact on you.
scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Sort out any differences you have with the people you live with you or nearby. Get ready to make your voice heard. Do your research, volunteer and be part of the solution.
sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Take time to rest, rethink and come up with a plan to bring about positive change. Invest in how you look and feel, and upgrade your skills and qualifications.
cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Check your investments, move money around and consider how to use your skills to excel. Jealousy, ego and competition will stand between you and your dreams.
AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Consider how you earn and spend your money. Nothing is for free; if you think you're getting something for nothing, ask direct questions and negotiate on your behalf.
PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Be open to eventsthatencouragemovement,socializing and fulfilling your heart's desires. Sitting idle will get you nowhere, but the moment you do something that resonates, magic will happen.
Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.
toDAy's cLuE: L EQuALs Q
CeLebrItY CIpher
better or For WorSe
beetLe bAILeY
Mother GooSe And GrIMM
LAGoon
nea CroSSwordS
Sudoku
InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.
Saturday’s PuzzleAnswer
La TimeS CroSSword
THewiZard oF id
BLondie
BaBY BLueS
Hi and LoiS
CurTiS
By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge
Buddha said, “There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: notgoing all theway, and not starting.”
When do you touch trumps in abridge deal?The answer might be at the start (sometimes), in the middle (occasionally), or never (rarely). Thereare also two waystoplaytrumps in abridge deal: two by two while drawing those heldby the opponents; and one by one, as in this deal.
How should South play in seven hearts afterWest leads the club queen?
North’sfour-diamond rebid is asplinter: at least four-card heartsupport, thevalues forgameand asingleton (or void) in diamonds. South uses twodoses of Blackwood beforebidding seven. (If you useRoman Key Card Blackwood, North would answer five diamonds, zero or three key cards. Then, over five no-trump, which guarantees possession of all four aces and the king-queen of trumps, North would bidsix clubs to show the club king.)
South has four tricks outside hearts: onespade,onediamondandtwoclubs.So he needs to take nine trump tricks.The deal requires acomplete crossruff. And in thissituation, declarer shouldfirst cash allofhis side-suit winners. He wins
Each Wuzzle is awordriddlewhich creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON
Previous answers:
word game
InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of fourormore letters. 2. Words that acquire fourletters by the addition of “s,”such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3 Additional
or an “s”
not be used. 4. Proper
or sexually explicit wordsare not allowed toDAy’s WoRD GAInFuL: GANE-ful: Profitable. Average mark12words Time
