32. July

Locally owned since 1867 Tuesday, July 11, 2023 iolaregister.com

Pulling for Jim

Event aids

local cancer patient

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

LAHARPE — The competition was most definitely secondary Sunday.

Teams of pony-pullers from across the Midwest — one from as far away as Illinois — were at the home of Tim and Dana Vest Sunday afternoon for a “Pulling For Jim” fundraiser. Proceeds from the competition, plus other events including a silent auction, bake sale and other donations, went to Iolan Jim Boeken, a long-time puller who is battling stage 4 throat and lung cancer.

“Jimmy’s always been a go-getter, and he even wanted to pull today,” Dana Vest said. “But he’s struggling. I hate that he’s having to go through all these struggles. We just want to help out, and maybe make things a little easier.”

Boeken, a truck driver, has been unable to work for more than a year as he underwent radiation and che-

motherapy. He recently was approved to receive disability benefits. The disease has taken a toll on his body. Unable to eat while undergoing treatment for his throat cancer, his weight plummeted from 240 pounds to a frail 170.

“It knocked the cancer

down, but not all of it,” Boeken said. “I get worn down pretty quickly.”

He is able to eat again, however. “Food is good,” he declared at one point.

In fact, Boeken had competed at a pony pull on Saturday in Bronson, but the effort left him too fatigued

Ukraine tops NATO summit agenda

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP)

— Russia’s war in Ukraine will top the agenda when U.S. President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts hold a summit in Lithuania’s capital over two days starting Tuesday.

They are expected to focus on ensuring that Ukraine has support as long as the conflict continues, how to bring the country even closer to NATO without actually joining, and security guar-

antees Kyiv might need to ensure that Russia doesn’t invade again after the war ends.

The leaders meeting in Vilnius are set to endorse new defense plans in case Russian President Vladimir Putin tries to broaden Moscow’s war beyond Ukraine and westward into allied territory. They also weigh defense spending, and how to boost their budgets as aid to Ukraine eats into national

military coffers.

Sweden’s accession to the 31-nation alliance is up for discussion, too, as Turkey delays the Scandinavian country’s entry into the world’s biggest security organization.

UKRAINE’S NATO MEMBERSHIP

The biggest item on NATO’s agenda is what to do about Ukraine. U.S. Presi-

See NATO | Page A3

to give it a go on Sunday.

Instead, he had a frontrow seat to watch as the other pullers took turns hitching their pony tandems to a large sled weighted with cinder blocks.

Several well-wishers

See BOEKEN | Page A3

Iola youth raising funds for soccer trip

PAGE B1

Judge stops license changes prior to lawsuit

PAGE A2

Gearing up for the county fair

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KC’s Kelce rises above partisans

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All smiles at Eras Tour

Iolan Jim Boeken, right, poses for a photo with 7-year-old Braxton Franklin at a pony pull benefit for Boeken, who suffers from cancer. Franklin, of Iola, was the youngest of the competitors at the event. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Iolan Shelby Bauer, right, and daughter Katie show off a vast assortment of friendship bracelets that they traded among the throngs of Taylor Swift fans who descended upon Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium over the weekend for Swift’s “Eras” concert. Additional photos of locals taking part in the festivities are on Page A6. COURTESY PHOTO

People walk towards a sculpture dedicated to the NATO military alliance in front of the Presidential Palace on Sunday in Vilnius, Lithuania, site of the 2023 NATO Summit, which runs Tuesday and Wednesday. GETTY IMAGES/SEAN GALLUP/TNS

Obituary

Doug Smoot

Douglas Eugene Smoot, 53, died

Saturday, July 8, 2023.

Douglas worked in law enforcement from 1999 to 2023 and had been a dispatcher since February.

He was born Feb. 4, 1970, to Paul Smoot and Jo Anne Bonczkowski.

He married Sherry Donavan on Dec. 31, 1994. They later divorced.

Doug Smoot

He married Gayla Saubers on April 17, 1999. She preceded him in death. He also was preceded in death by his parents.

He married Melissa Schomaker on May 7, 2022.

She survives, as do his children, Tabitha Smoot of Perry, Tytan Smoot, Yates Center, and Taven Smoot, Yates Center; and stepchildren Jake Howard and Mary Frantz, both of the home.

The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Campbell Funeral Home in Yates Center. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Yates Center High School. Burial will follow at Buffalo Cemetery.

Richard Weilert

Kansas must stop changing trans people’s sex listing on driver’s licenses, judge says

By JOHN HANNA The Associated Press

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP)

— Kansas must stop allowing transgender people to change the sex listed on their driver’s licenses, a state-court judge ordered Monday as part of a lawsuit filed by the state’s Republican attorney general.

his residence on Saturday, July 8, 2023. Richard was born March 26, 1941, in Dodge City, to Dr. John J. Weilert and Anna Mae (Robinson) Weilert-Works.

Richard graduated in 1959 from Humboldt High School. He served his country in the U.S. Army for three years.

Richard married Louise Smith on June 19, 1976, in Humboldt. She survives, as do numerous other relatives and friends.

A Rosary will be recited at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 22, 2023, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Humboldt, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10. Inurnment with military honors will be in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, Humboldt.

Memorials are suggested to Wings of Warriors, and may be left with Feuerborn Family Funeral Service, 1883 US Highway 54, Iola, Kansas.

Condolences may be left at www.feuerbornfuneral.com.

Suspect in 1982 Tylenol poisonings dies at 76

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — The suspect in the 1982 Tylenol poisonings that killed seven people in the Chicago area and triggered a nationwide scare has died, police confirmed on Monday.

Officers, firefighters and EMTs responding to a report of unresponsive person about 4 p.m. Sunday found James Lewis dead in his Cambridge, Massachusetts, home, Cambridge Police Superintendent

By The Associated Press

A solar storm forecast for Thursday is expected to give skygazers in 17 American states a chance to glimpse the Northern Lights, the colorful sky show that happens when solar wind hits the atmosphere.

Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis, are most often seen in Alaska, Canada and Scandinavia, but an 11-year solar cycle that’s expected to peak in 2024 is making the lights visible in places farther to the south.

Frederick Cabral said in a statement. He was 76.

“Following an investigation, Lewis’ death was determined to be not suspicious,” the statement said. No one was ever charged in the deaths of seven people who took drugs laced with cyanide. Lewis served more than 12 years in prison for sending an extortion note to Johnson & Johnson, demanding $1 million to “stop the killing.”

Three months ago, the light displays were visible in Arizona, marking the third severe geomagnetic storm since the current solar cycle began in 2019.

The Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks has forecast auroral activity on Thursday in Alaska, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Indiana, Maine and Maryland.

District Judge Teresa Watson’s order will remain in effect for up to two weeks, although she can extend it. But it’s significant because transgender people have been able to change their driver’s licenses in Kansas for at least four years, and almost 400 people have done it. For now, Kansas will be among only a few states that don’t allow any such changes.

The judge issued the order three days after Attorney General Kris Kobach sued two officials in Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s administration. Kelly announced last month that the state’s motor vehicles division would continue changing driver’s licenses for transgender people so that their sex listing matches their gender identities.

Kobach contends that a law, which took effect on July 1, prevents such changes and requires the state to reverse any previous changes in its records. It defines “male” and “female” so that Kansas law does not recognize the gender identities of transgender, non-binary or gender non-conforming people.

Watson wrote in her brief order that for the motor vehicles division to keep making changes for transgender people would case “immediate and irreparable injury.” Driver’s licenses remain valid for six years, and Watson noted Kobach’s

Auroral activity also has been forecast for Canada, including Vancouver. Light displays are expected to be visible overhead in Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Helena, Montana, and low on the horizon in Salem, Oregon.; Boise, Idaho; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Annapolis, Maryland; and Indianapolis, according to the institute. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center said people wanting to experience an aurora should get

argument that licenses “are difficult to take back or out of circulation once issued.”

“Licenses are used by law enforcement to identify criminal suspects, crime victims, wanted persons, missing persons and others,” Watson wrote. “Compliance with state legal requirements for identifying license holders is a public safety concern.”

Kelly’s office said it was working on a response to Watson’s order. Kelly won her first term as governor in 2018 by defeating Kobach, who was then the Kansas secretary of state. He in turn staged a political comeback last year by winning the attorney general’s race as she captured a second term — both of them by slim margins.

The governor’s office has said attorneys at the division of vehicles’ parent agency, the Kansas Department of Revenue, do not believe allowing transgender people to change their driver’s licenses violates the new law.

Four times as many people a month have changed their driver’s licenses this year than in previous years. Such changes accelerated in May and June as LGBTQ+ rights advocates encouraged

away from city lights and that the best viewing times are between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. Northern Lights occur when a magnetic solar wind slams into the Earth’s magnetic field and causes atoms in the upper atmosphere to glow. The lights appear suddenly and the intensity varies. A geomagnetic index known as Kp ranks auroral activity on a scale from zero to nine, with zero being not very active and nine being bright and active. The Geophysical Institute has forecast Kp 6 for Thursday’s storm.

people to do it ahead of the new law.

Taryn Jones, vice chair and lobbyist for the LGBTQ+ rights group Equality Kansas, acknowledged the concern that allowing the state to keep making changes would make it more difficult for law enforcement, but asked, “How many criminals are you having that are trans?” She said trans people will still be able to change their names to align

with their gender identities.

Jones also said potential problems for law enforcement should be weighed against the harm to the mental health and safety of transgender people who don’t have licenses that match their gender identities.

“You know, it’s hard enough being trans right now in America, especially in a conservative place like Kansas,” she said.

Carlyle news

Carlyle Presbyterian Church Pastor Steve Traw’s message Sunday, “Our Blessed Hope,” was taken from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. “This event is referred to as ‘Our Blessed Hope’ or ‘Rapture Event’ that comes with no prior warning — but is imminent,” Traw said.

As recorded in 1

Thessalonians 4:16-18: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore, comfort and encourage one another with these words.”

You can watch the church service at 10 a.m. Sundays via Facebook. Myrna Wildschuetz played “It Could Happen in a Moment” for the prelude and “My God and I” for the offertory.

Rita Sanders played a piano solo “There’ll be Peace in the Valley.”

Assisting Pastor Steve with Communion were David Loomis, Merrill Hodgden, Virginia Warren and Glen Hershberger.

Police news

Charisma Hightower celebrated her birthday on Monday. The Church Fellowship Dinner will follow the morning worship services at noon on July 16. Bible Study with Pastor Steve is at 3 p.m. Tuesdays on the New Testament Book of Matthew. Vehicles collide Cody D. Craft was southbound on Chestnut Street Thursday morning, when he pulled out in front of a westbound vehicle driven by Kelly J. Kaufman, Iola police officers reported. Neither driver was injured, nor were their passengers in the collision.

Kris Kobach offers his opinion during a June 26 news conference about how Senate Bill 180 should be implemented. (SAM BAILEY/KANSAS REFLECTOR)

Disgraced doctor stabbed in prison attack

WASHINGTON (AP)

— Disgraced sports doctor Larry Nassar, who was convicted of sexually abusing Olympic and college female gymnasts, was stabbed multiple times by another inmate at a federal prison in Florida that is experiencing staffing shortages.

The attack happened Sunday at United States Penitentiary Coleman, and Nassar was in stable condition on Monday, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

One of the people said Nassar had been stabbed in the back and in the chest. The two officers guarding the unit where Nassar was held were working mandated overtime shifts because of staffing short-

ages, one of the people said.

The people were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the attack or the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity.

Nassar is serving decades in prison for convictions in state and federal courts. He admitted sexually assaulting athletes when he worked at Michigan State University and at Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians. Nassar also pleaded guilty in a separate case to possessing images of child sexual abuse.

The federal Bureau of Prisons has experienced significant staffing shortages in the last few years, an issue

thrust into the spotlight in 2019 when the convicted financier Jeffrey Epstein took his own life at a federal jail in New York.

An Associated Press investigation in 2021 revealed nearly one third of federal correctional officer positions were vacant nationwide, forcing prisons to use cooks, teachers, nurses and other workers to guard inmates. The staffing shortages have hampered the response to emergencies at other prisons, including suicides.

Other AP investigations have revealed sexual abuse and criminal conduct, among other problems, at the Bureau of Prisons — the Justice Department’s largest agency, with more

than 30,000 employees, 158,000 inmates and an annual budget of about $8 billion.

The bureau’s new leader, Colette Peters, was brought in last year to reform the crisis-plagued agency. She has vowed to reform archaic hiring practices and bring new transparency. But problems have persisted, as shown by the the recent suicide of Ted Kaczynski, known as the “Unabomber,” at a federal lockup in North Carolina.

On Sunday, one of the officers in Nassar’s unit was working a third straight shift — a 16-hour day, one of the people familiar with the matter said. The other officer was on their second straight shift, the person said.

Relentless rain floods Northeast

By KATHY MCCORMACK The Associated Press

Rescue teams raced into Vermont on Monday after heavy rain drenched parts of Northeast, washing out roads, forcing evacuations and halting some airline travel.

One person was killed in New York as she was trying to leave her home.

Mike Cannon of Vermont Urban Search and Rescue said crews from North Carolina, Michigan and Connecticut were among those helping to get to towns that have been unreachable since torrents of

rain belted the state overnight.

Cannon said the hardest hit area are along the mountainous areas of the Green Mountains in the state’s southern and central counties. The towns of Londonderry and Weston were inaccessible, and rescuers were heading there to do welfare checks. A state park in Plymouth was being evacuated, and water levels at several dams were being monitored.

The slow-moving storm reached New England in the morning after hitting parts of New York and Connecticut on Sunday.

NATO: Ukraine, Sweden top agenda for 2023 summit

Continued from A1

dent George W. Bush led the charge in 2008, promising that Ukraine would become a member one day.

Now, the country is trying to fend off a full-scale invasion by NATO’s old foe Russia. The West believes that Ukraine is standing up for its interests, and countries are pouring in billions in aid, economic and military support.

NATO isn’t ready to start membership talks

with Ukraine yet. But it is helping to train and modernize its armed forces and security institutions to ensure that the country can take its place among NATO’s ranks after the war is over. The summit will see a new forum for consultations created — the NATO-Ukraine Council.

SECURITY GUARANTEES

It’s not really a topic for NATO — more for individual allies — but it’s set to dominate talks in Vilnius.

NATO and its Western partners are discussing ways to protect Ukraine after the war from a future invasion. NATO membership offers ironclad “all for one, one for all” protection, but the 31 countries must agree unanimously on letting Ukraine in, and they’re not united on this.

Failing that, major allies like the U.S., U.K., France and Germany could pledge to shield the country from anoth-

Jerry Kindheart, center, of Perry, Ill., guides his tandem of ponies at a pony pull in LaHarpe Sunday, held to raise funds for Iolan Jim Boeken, who is fighting throat and lung cancer. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Boeken: Fighting cancer

Continued from A1

stopped by to greet him with a hug or a handshake. Several also handed over cash.

“I’ve seen that more than once,” Dana Vest. “People are very generous with something like this.”

The Vests have organized similar fundraisers for friends in years past.

“The way I look at it, I’d hope someone would do something like this for me if I ever needed help,” Tim Vest said.

Many of the competitors in Bronson decided to stick around the area for an extra day for Boeken’s benefit.

Meanwhile, Dana Vest spent the better part of three months soliciting donations for the silent auction. More than 100 donors areed to make a contribution of some sort.

Several other friends baked up

mouth-watering cinnamon rolls, brownies, cookies, hot dogs and Polish sausages as well.

“These are fun little events,” Dana Vest said. “We have a lot of these competitions in the summer. That we’re able to help somebody like Jim makes it even better.” If the shoe was on the other foot, she added, “Jim would be out here

doing it for any of us.”

Much of the funding will help toward transportation expenses for Boeken, who must make regular trips to Pittsburg and Joplin for treatment.

Friends also have set up an online account for donations. Just visit www.angelink.com and enter “Jim Boeken” in the search bar to donate.

er attack. NATO and the European Union would back that military protection with more money and other aid. It’s unlikely that any conclusions will be drawn in Vilnius, but the summit is an important moment for leaders to flesh out what those guarantees might look like.

SWEDEN’S NATO MEMBERSHIP

Nearly all allies, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Sweden say the country has done enough to join the military alliance.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan doesn’t agree, and he aims to steal the summit spotlight.

Sweden has given up a history of military neutrality to seek protection under NATO’s security umbrella. It has changed its anti-terror laws and lifted an arms embargo on Turkey to assuage Erdogan’s concerns.

To no avail.

The long-time Turkish leader used the issue during election campaigning last month. He’s also seeking upgraded F-16 fighter jets from the U.S., and Sweden could be leverage.

DEFENSE SPENDING

This is a perennial issue. The U.S. routinely flails its

allies for failing to spend enough on their defense budgets. With money, arms and ammunition being poured into Ukraine, the need to boost national military budgets is a no-brainer.

The allies agreed in 2014 to move toward spending 2% of their gross domestic product on defense within a decade. The 2024 deadline approaches.

In Vilnius, the leaders will agree to make 2% the floor — that is, the least they should be spending — rather than the ceiling.

REGIONAL DEFENSE PLANS

NATO is conducting the biggest revamp of its defense plans since the Cold War in case Putin decides to widen the conflict outside Ukraine.

Right now, around 40,000 troops are on standby from Estonia in the north down to Romania on the Black Sea. About 100 aircraft take to the skies each day, and 27 warships are operating in the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas.

Those numbers are set to rise. Under new defense plans, NATO aims to have up to 300,000 troops available to move to its eastern flank within 30 days. The plans divide its territory into

three zones – the high north and Atlantic area, a zone north of the Alps, and another in southern Europe. The top-secret documents lay out which countries and what equipment should defend any area under threat.

BELARUS

It’s not on the agenda, but NATO hopes that Belarus, Lithuania’s big neighbor, and Russia’s main backer, will play no surprise role in the summit or the war in Ukraine.

Belarus lies just 35 kilometers (22 miles) from Vilnius. Wagner mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was offered refuge there. The jury is out on how many of his fighters might join him.

“We have seen some preparations for hosting large groups of soldiers in Belarus. So far, we haven’t seen them going to Belarus,” Stoltenberg said Friday.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko also said last month that his country has received Russian tactical nuclear weapons. He’s warning that he would order their use to protect his country. NATO officials think he’s bluffing. But it’s quite possible that Putin will resume his nuclear saber-rattling again as the leaders gather in Vilnius.

Kansas has about 115 grasshopper species, but only five are considered a theat to crops and vegetables. PIXABAY.COM

Grasshoppers are one of summer’s destructive pests

By KRISTA HARDING KSU Extension

Grasshoppers seemed to have started feeding in my landscape a few weeks ago. Their main target has been my Mexican sunflower blooms. I’m not sure what makes them so tasty to the grasshoppers. Believe it or not, Kansas has approximately 115 grasshopper species. Fortunately though, only 5 species are considered as threats to crops and vegetables. The differential and two-stripped grasshoppers are the most common type found in the home garden.

These two types of grasshoppers are characterized by their large size, with adults averaging 1½ to 2 inches in length. The differential grasshopper is mostly yellow and black and has a V-shaped pattern on their hind legs. The two-striped grasshopper is brownish or grayish in color. As you look at them from above, there are two yellow stripes running down the top of the head.

Grasshoppers remain in the area where they were hatched, and feed primarily on grasses and broadleaf plants. Sometimes when there are large populations of grasshoppers and all of the available plants have been consumed, they will seek out new food sources. Trees may become targets once other plant materials have been eaten. In drought situations, grasshoppers will feed

on anything containing moisture including moist soil, wood and even linens that are left outside.

Sometimes you will hear people say that grasshoppers like hot dry conditions. That is sort of true. Basically, grasshoppers are more noticeable during drought conditions because they are in search of new food sources. In years of low populations or when there is adequate moisture, grasshoppers will stay in their hatching area and they do not cause a great deal of damage.

So what is a homeowner supposed to do to protect their plants?

I am sure some of you have used a spray treatment and are convinced that the spray did not kill the grasshoppers. Some of the grasshoppers were more than likely killed, but you probably didn’t notice the dead ones because new ones had already hatched and had begun their destruction.

Before spraying any insecticide, please check the product label. Permethrin and carbaryl (Sevin) will work on vegetables and ornamentals. For insecticides applied to vegetables, it is important to observe the post-harvest intervals listed on product labels. For a complete list of available insecticides, please contact me at the Extension office.

Krista Harding is a K-State Research and Extension Horticulture agent assigned to Southwind District.

It’s county fair time and this means that 4-H’ers have the opportunity to showcase all of their hard work learned on projects throughout the 4-H year. For many, this time of year is a highlight of the 4-H program.

Have you ever wondered what the different colored ribbons attached to exhibits mean? Well, I would like to tell you how 4-H exhibits are evaluated at the local county fair.

At the local county fair, most exhibits are judged on a conference or interview basis. This is where the judge interviews the participant as he or she evaluates the product against a set of standards rather than against other exhibits. The purpose of this judging is to determine what the 4-H’er learned while completing the project. Judges may consider skill level based on age and circumstance, and expect a higher performance

from older 4-H’ers, so there is some variance within the standard. Comments are generally provided verbally and sometimes written. After the exhibit is evaluated, the judge then awards a ribbon placing to the exhibit.

In 4-H, we use the Danish Ribbon System where exhibits are placed into four different ribbon groups. A purple ribbon means outstanding on all standards, a blue ribbon exceeds the minimum standards but may have some minor flaws where improvements can be made, a

red ribbon meets all minimum standards and may have some visible signs of needed improvement and finally a white ribbon fails to meet the minimum standard for the project. Of the purple ribbons, the judge can select a Champion and Reserve Champion.

In 4-H, we believe that using the Danish Ribbon System gives every 4-H member the recognition deserved for the work that was done and encourage them to follow the motto “to make the best better.” While no evaluation system is perfect, this system helps 4-H develop top quality youth instead of focusing on purple ribbon projects.

I encourage you to visit your local county fair and see all of the

amazing work 4-H’ers have on display. And as you walk around, pay close attention to the different ribbon placings attached to projects. You will notice there will be any number of purples, blues, reds, or whites in each of the departments. This is the Danish Ribbon System, where 4-H’ers are encouraged to challenge themselves, set goals, and receive constructive criticism. All things to help young people build essential life skills to thrive.

For more information about 4-H Youth Development, reach out to Jennifer Terrell, District Extension Agent for K-State Research and Extension – Southwind District at jkterrell@ksu.edu or 620-223-3720.

BEIJING (AP) — Employers across much of China were ordered Monday to limit outdoor work due to scorching temperatures, while the east and southwest were warned to prepare for torrential rain as the country struggled with heat, flooding and drought. Temperatures as high as 104 degrees were reported in cities including Shijiazhuang, southwest of Beijing, the capital. Highs of 95 to 100 were reported in Beijing, Guangzhou in the south, Chongqing in the southwest and Shenyang in the northeast.

IN THE U.S., record heat will spread from the Southwest across Texas and the Great Plains this week, with temperatures of 100 degrees or more straining electricity networks.

The blistering heat will sear down across the southern U.S. and northern Mexico, challenging local records.

Temperatures in Phoenix may reach 109 Sun-

day and as high as 114F across the region. Residents have been urged to stay indoors and seek air conditioning. An excessive heat warning extends across parts of southern California and Arizona, and heat advisories reach into Texas and Florida, where temperatures in many places may reach or exceed 100F for days, the National Weather Service said. Record-breaking heat taxed energy grids in both Mexico and Texas in June, with power outages popping up and the threat of rolling blackouts rising as officials tried to manage supplies. A surge of deaths across northern Mexico were blamed on excessive heat.

Del Rio, Texas, set 12 daily temperatures records, including 11 in a row, as well as posting its all-time hottest day of 115F on June 21. Earth’s average temperature set a new unofficial record high last Thursday, the third such milestone in the hottest week on record.

California landslide sweeps away 12 homes

ROLLING HILLS ES-

TATES, Calif. (AP) — A dozen homes torn apart by earth movement on Southern California’s Palos Verdes Peninsula during the weekend were likely to fall into an adjacent canyon, an official said.

The homes in the Los Angeles County city of Rolling Hills Estates were hastily evacuated by firefighters on Saturday when cracks began appearing in structures and the ground.

Walls and roofs began to fail as the land continued to slide, the county Fire Department showed in video released on social media.

Significant land movement overnight completely destroyed the homes, Janice Hahn, chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, said in a social media post Sunday.

“To think that these homes were intact, you know, yesterday afternoon, and today you

can hear the creaking, the cracking, the crumbling,” Hahn told a news conference Sunday. “They’re going to fall.”

The city was collaborating with county agencies and the Red Cross to support displaced residents, Mayor Britt Huff said.

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Kansas City’s Kelce proves he’s above the hateful politics

We commend Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. His recent choice to appear in a new ad for Bud Light could not have been an easy decision.

Or maybe it was.

Per NFL rules, Kelce was prohibited from drinking the beer in the commercial, but the 15-second spot, “Backyard Grunts with Travis Kelce,” is Bud Light’s attempt to market the beer to sports fans.

Wokeness killed the brand, critics contend. We don’t agree.

We found nothing wrong with Bud Light’s decision to give transgender woman and social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney a few cans of beer to feature in a single social media post. Others did.

Parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev, a company whose roots are in Missouri, took a hit. And conservatives rejoiced.

Tying his reputation to a brand that has been the target of a widespread boycott takes courage, a character trait Kelce often exhibits on the field.

In Kansas City, we learned some time ago Kelce was fearless: Over the course of his 10-year, record-setting career in the NFL, we’ve seen him run over hapless defenders with regularity. Kelce is never one to shy away from contact.

Away from the gridiron, Kelce is a superstar-in-waiting. He starred in a reality television show. He is featured in the July/August issue of Vanity Fair magazine. Earlier this year, he hosted a Saturday Night Live episode.

“I think he killed it,” SNL creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels told Vanity Fair.

And let’s not forget Kelce’s active involvement in the Operation Breakthrough Ignition Lab, a co-working space for teens to explore careers in STEM located near East 31st Street and Troost Avenue in Kansas City.

Are we surprised Kelce popped up in a 15-second

YouTube commercial for Bud Light? We shouldn’t be. Kelce recently signed with talent agency CAA. His future prospects away from the field appear bright.

Kelce has done nothing but been a class act since he was drafted out of Cincinnati in the third round of the NFL draft a decade ago. As a Chief, much like teammate and quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Kelce has kept mostly clear of legal problems and controversy.

He would make a great pitch person for any company, including one embroiled in a culture war with rightwing types. We would be naive to think Kelce won’t take some heat for the new ad. But he has no reason to hang his head.

In the immediate aftermath of Mulvaney’s April 1 post, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley seemed to cheer on Bud Light’s dwindling sales.

“Woke globalists are ruining a great company,” Hawley wrote on TwitterApril.

“Thanks, InBev.”

And let’s not forget the antics of Nick Schroer, the residency-challenged state senator from St. Charles County.

In April, on the grass in front of the Missouri State Capitol, Schroer used a baseball bat to smash a can of Bud Light. The act was immature and performative. But also disrespectful to employees of a company that has provided middle-class opportunities to Missourian workers for generations.

Hawley, Schroer and others like them aren’t the statesmen they claim to be. In months, InBev’s value has tanked by billions, financial analysts have said. Layoffs, resignations and reorganization have followed.

No one should root for that. And Chiefs fans of all ages everywhere should join Kelce in lifting an American brand out of a senseless controversy started by an act of inclusiveness.

— Kansas City Star

Colleges must stop legacy admissions

Thursday, after the U.S. Supreme Court knocked down affirmative action in higher education admissions in a case against Harvard University, President Joe Biden took aim at the old boys network of giving a boost to the kids of alumni, saying “Today, I’m directing the Department of Education to analyze what practices help build a more inclusive and diverse student bodies and what practices hold that back, practices like legacy admissions and other systems that expand privilege instead of opportunity.”

Four days later, on Monday, advocates in Boston filed a complaint with the feds that Harvard’s system of legacy admission advantage for Junior violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Our headline, “the stupid sons of rich men,” comes from Charles Eliot, the president of Harvard for 40 years, until 1909. He wanted to open the university’s door to scholars with brains, be they Jews, women or Blacks and not just rely on the gene pool of alums. Legacy admissions demean students it purports to help and perpetuates a parent to children inheritance that excludes talented strivers trying to get in. A few top colleges have banned legacy admissions namely, Johns Hopkins and Amherst. With the end of affirmative action and legacies the next target, schools shouldn’t wait until they are forced to end it.

— New York Daily News

A funeral is held for 12-year-old Zyion Charles on Dec. 10, 2022, in Atlanta. Two teenagers are being held for the murder of Charles and Cameron Jackson, age 15, caught in the crossfire when an argument amongst a group of youths broke out. (ARVIN TEMKAR/THE ATLANTA

JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION/TNS)

I’m a pediatrician. Here’s how to protect kids

By DOROTHY R. NOVICK For the Washington Post

Surveys of pediatricians show that a great majority believe educating families about safe firearm storage is a natural extension of health care, yet less than half actually do it. Why not? Because it takes extra time, materials and provider training. Many also worry about a political confrontation in the exam room.

But firearms are the leading cause of death for children in this country, and safe storage saves lives. Studies show, and my experience confirms, that families are more than receptive to this kind of intervention. We need to pour every available resource into encouraging safe firearm storage.

Recently, I asked a mother whether there were guns in her home. Her response was familiar: “I wish I didn’t need one,” she said. “But Dr. Novick, you can’t imagine.” She went on to explain that the only way to keep her children safe was to have a loaded firearm beneath her mattress. For many families in my care, the fear is of community gun violence and break-ins. For her, it was of an abusive ex-partner.

I did my best to help balance her palpable fear against the dangers of the loaded firearm, expressing my concerns that firearms often escalate threatening situations and that her children could easily discover it. As we spoke, it became clear that she shared my worry about how curious children can be, but removing the firearm was not an option. So I turned to the next-best solution: I offered her a gun cable lock from my practice’s supply down the hall. She said thank you, then asked if I might spare a few extras for her friends and family.

These conversations are about safety, not politics.

from

gun deaths

Instead of focusing on what might divide us, they center on the value we share with parents more than any other: the well-being of their children. Most parents understand this. In fact, many say they keep guns loaded and easily accessible because they want to make their homes safer. The reality is the opposite. Last month in Ohio, a 2-year-old boy shot and killed his pregnant mother. When authorities entered the home, they found child safety gates installed in the doorways and locks on all the drawers, yet they also found the loaded pistol the boy had discovered in his parents’ nightstand, as well as a loaded shotgun in one closet and a rifle in another. If every American family treated deadly weapons the same way as other household hazards by securing them, this boy might still have a mother. Similar horror stories are all too familiar. Of the 2,590 U.S. children killed by gunfire in 2021, almost 40 percent died from suicide and unintentional shootings. Most of the time, such incidents involve a family member’s accessible gun. When children find guns inside homes, as the news from Ohio tragically illustrates, those as young as 2 are strong enough to pull the trigger. And when teens experience suicidal thoughts, the presence of a firearm in that heightened emotional moment can be the difference between life and death. Nine out of 10 die before they can reconsider. Gun locks and safes are not generally listed as recommended childproofing items on popular parenting websites. They aren’t given out at baby showers along with outlet plugs and yellow rubber bath toys that turn red if the water’s too hot. But given that about 40 percent of adults with children in this country live in

households with firearms, perhaps the time has come that they should be. Less than half of firearms owners practice safe storage. If gun ownership is normal in this country, gun safety needs to be normal as well.

Pediatricians routinely ask about car seats, bike helmets and smoke detectors. Why not do the same with firearms? Studies show we have the greatest impact when we also distribute locking devices at the point of care. This is why at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, we now stock gun cable locks alongside the baby thermometers and breastfeeding devices we can offer families in our emergency department and several primary-care practices. We are actively expanding this program across our institution, and similar efforts are burgeoning nationwide.

Evidence shows it works. Counseling coupled with locking device distribution increases safe firearm storage, which is well-proven to reduce youth suicide and unintentional shootings. Even modest increases in safe storage can lead to a 32 percent decrease in child firearm fatalities, and the most stringent Child Access Prevention laws reduce these fatalities by as much as 54 percent.

On average a child shoots himself or someone else every day in this country, and a young person dies by suicide every 2 hours and 11 minutes. We can’t bring the 2-year-old’s mother back or give him his baby brother. But we can prevent the next tragedy by normalizing this conversation so that every firearm, in every household across America, is stored under lock and key.

About the author: Dorothy R. Novick is a pediatrician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a scholar with CHOP’s Center for Violence Prevention.

In what can

be

Iolan Patty McGuffin, from foreground, attends this weekend’s Taylor Swift “Eras” Tour at Arrowhead Stadium, along with Karly McGuffin, Kirstin McGuffin Williams and Hayley Williams. COURTESY PHOTO

At left, throngs of Taylor Swift fans donned friendship bracelets and painted “13” on their wrists — Swift’s favorite number — while attending Friday and Saturday’s “Eras” concerts at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadi-

Elza Clift, left, and Wren Clift smile for a photo prior

Taylor Swift concert at

fairly

described as the concert event of this generation, throngs of Taylor Swift fans flocked to Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Friday and Saturday for the music superstar’s “Eras” Tour. Several Allen Countians were among the contingents who attended the 3 1/2-hour concert. Swift performed 48 songs during the show. PHOTO COURTESY OF MADISON LUKEN

Kary Bruner, from left, Peyton Weast and Samantha George were in attendance for the Taylor Swift “Eras” concert at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City over the weekend. COURTESY OF HEATHER WEAST

Iolans in attendance at the Taylor Swift “Eras” concert in Kansas City are, from left, Kendall Glaze, Brandon Whittley, Anna Nelson, Everett Glaze and Annemarie McCullough. At left, Swift Street in downtown Kansas City, Mo., was renamed “Taylor Swift Street (Taylor’s Version)” for the weekend. COURTESY OF ANNA NELSON

Peyton Weast, left, and Kary Bruner pose for a photo with a Taylor Swift display. COURTESY OF HEATHER WEAST

From left, Elza Clift, Wren Clift, Sara Clift, Marin Coffield and Ceri Coffield pose for a photo outside Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium prior to Taylor Swift’s “Eras” concert performance. COURTESY PHOTO

From left, Paige Olson, Kylee Pitts, Mayte Breithaupt, Nico Holland and Madison Luken pose for a photo outside Arrowhead Stadium Saturday for the Taylor Swift “Eras” concert. COURTESY

um. COURTESY OF PAIGE OLSON

Sports Daily B

LSU Tigers top MLB Draft order

SEATTLE (AP) — LSU’s stars stole the spotlight at the College World Series. It carried over to the top of baseball’s amateur draft.

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected hard-throwing LSU right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes with the top pick in the draft on Sunday night, with teammate Dylan Crews going No. 2 to the Washington Nationals.

It’s the first time in the draft’s history teammates went 1-2.

“It’s super humbling. I was in shock when I heard,” Skenes said. “A year ago, two years ago, I never through it was a possibility to be the first overall pick. I don’t know what I was expecting going into today, but it means a lot.”

Skenes went 12-3 with 209 strikeouts in 122 2/3 innings in helping lead the Tigers to the College World Series championship. The pick was announced by Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr., the top pick of the 1987 draft by the Seattle Mariners.

Skenes was the first college pitcher selected

See MLB | Page B3

Djokovic’s experience an advantage

WIMBLEDON, England

(AP) — Novak Djokovic’s experience was on display at Wimbledon on Monday. And so was Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva’s inexperience.

Djokovic, a seven-time champion at the All England Club who is looking for his 24th Grand Slam title overall, reached the quarterfinals at the grasscourt major for the 14th time by beating Hubert Hurkacz 7-6 (6), 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-4 in a match that started Sunday on Centre Court.

Djokovic saved three set points in the first set and then was two points from losing the second set. Play was then suspended because of the late hour. On Monday, Hurkacz finally managed to pick up a set, using his strong serve to near perfection.

“Honestly, I don’t recall the last time I felt this miserable in returning games ... due to his incredibly accurate and powerful serve,” Djokovic said on court. “He’s got one of the best serves in the world and it’s so difficult to read it.”

Hurkacz had held his serve for all 67 games at Wimbledon this year until the fourth set, when Djokovic broke him to lead 4-3. Before that, the 17th-seeded Pole had saved all 18 break points he faced.

Djokovic reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam tournament for the 56th time in his career,

Iola youth has goal to play in Europe

By QUINN BURKITT The Iola Register

What could be a once-in-alifetime opportunity has presented itself for 11-year-old Milo Franklin.

The Iola youth is raising funds to travel to Europe with the Sporting Kaw Valley Elite team next spring.

Franklin has been mowing lawns, running a lemonade stand and conducting a raffle for a Travis Kelce signed jersey. He’s met about 40% of his goal.

Franklin, the son of Aaron and Allegra Franklin, has been playing with the Kansas City-based team for five years.

“It’s much more physical, the kids are faster and have more endurance,” Franklin said of the league. “They have higher skill levels. When I started with this team I wanted to do everything myself but I’ve learned to pass the ball and play in my spot and do what I’m supposed to do.”

Franklin first began playing soccer at age 4. “My speed helps me get by a lot of people and my strength helps too,” Franklin said. “There’s a challenge in playing people you’ve nev-

er seen before and you don’t know what their strengths and weaknesses are. It’s about adjusting.”

“My shooting and physicality have probably improved the most,” Franklin

said of his involvement with the team.

Aaron Franklin commended his son.

“He’s got pretty high aspirations. He tells me he wants to play college soccer,” Aaron Franklin said. “That’s what I feel this fundraiser is more about, learning that when you have goals in life you have to work toward them.”

Locals may want to look out for his lemonade stand at Iola’s Farm City Days or at Humboldt’s Water Wars coming up later this summer.

“The lemonade stand was pretty good during LaHarpe Days,” said Franklin. “I’ve sold a few tickets for the Kelce jersey.”

The team will travel to Europe next March where they will match up against international teams.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge and I’d like to see some monuments there,” Franklin said.

Humboldt Speedway hosts weekly racing

By JEREMY HEIM The Humboldt Speedway

HUMBOLDT — Mother nature worked in the Humboldt Speedway’s favor when it allowed for some great racing Friday night.

Home Savings Bank Factory Stocks saw #7 Dallas Joyce pick up his seventh win from a middle- ofthe-pack start. Coming in second place was Derrek Wilson. Third place was claimed by #4 Matthew Kay — his first appearance of the season. Coming in 4th was Trey Stipp in the 14M car. And 5th place went to Tevyn James in the 17 car.

Extrusion Inc. Midwest Mods saw a new winner this week. The driver, #7 Jesse Folk Jr., had a good run as he got in front early and never looked back. Blake Sutton, in the 99JR car, started 9th and drove his way up to finish in 2nd place. Jon Westhoff, #9, took 3rd. Finish-

ing 4th was “The Real Tyler Davis” in the 01JR car. Fifth place went to #16 Matthew Kay. In the USRA Tuners, the 4T of Trenton Wilson got out in front early and drove it home for the win. The 707 of Larry Trester brought home 2nd place. Travis Bockover in the 15 car took 3rd. Bringing home 4th was the 3B of Mike Brown. ARMI Contracting USRA

Modifieds saw #127 Paden Phillips keep the hot streak alive by picking up his 4th victory in a row. Phillips had a lap time of 15 seconds. Coming in 2nd was the #9 Kenton Allen. Third place went to #52C Alex Cammon. This was his first visit to Humboldt this season. Finishing 4th was Trevor

Iola’s Milo Franklin plays on the Sporting Kaw Valley Elite team, an affiliate of Sporting Kansas City. COURTESY PHOTO

Iola’s Milo Franklin poses with a trophy. COURTESY PHOTO

US beats Canada 3-2 in shootout

CINCINNATI (AP) — Matt Turner told his American teammates not to worry when their match against Canada went to penalty kicks.

“He had the last word before we went out to the field,” U.S. interim coach B.J. Callaghan said. “It’s just encouraging the guys to stay calm, stay committed to what they’ve practiced.” Turner stopped two penalty kicks, and the American beat Canada 3-2 in the shootout after a 2-2 draw Sunday night for a berth in a CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal against Panama. The U.S. had not won a shootout since 2005.

“A lot of the penalties that I had seen on my sheets or in my preparation, most of those guys were off the pitch by the time the pens were there,” Turner said. “I just trusted my instincts, really, and typically when I do that, I find myself having a lot more success.”

Brandon Vázquez gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead in the 88th minute, but

Steven Vitória tied the score in the third minute of stoppage time with a penalty kick after a hand ball on Miles Robinson. Jacob Shaffelburg put Canada ahead in the 109th but an own goal by Canada’s Scott Kennedy made it 2-2 in the 115th.

Turner stopped Vitória’s opening penalty kick with his right

hand when Vitória shot down the middle, as he did in regulation. Vázquez skied his attempt over the crossbar and Turner dived left to bat away Liam Fraser’s attempt.

“He’s a really settling force at the back for the U.S.,” Canada coach John Herdman said. “He’s got wonderful feet. He’s game man-

agement is very good, and he can save penalties.”

Cade Cowell, Gianluca Busio and Jesús Ferreira all converted for the U.S. while Kamal Miller and Jacen Russell-Rowe made shots for Canada. Charles-Andreas Brym put Canada’s final attempt off the crossbar.

See USA | Page B4

MLB draft: Pirates are popular

Continued from B1

No. 1 overall since Casey Mize by Detroit in 2018.

“He had an incredibly special season at LSU. He obviously took another step forward this spring,” Pittsburgh general manager Ben Cherington said. “It’s a really special combination of pitches and just as much about the mix and command than any one pitch.”

For the second time in three years, the Pirates held the top overall selection thanks to winning the first draft lottery and jumping Washington in the selection order. The Pirates picked catcher Henry Davis at the top in 2021; he made his major league debut last month for Pittsburgh. Skenes’ signing bonus is expected to be near the slot value of about $9.7 million. Cherington said the hope is an agreement can come quickly and Skenes could pitch somewhere in the Pirates organization in 2023.

“It will have been a little while since he last pitched in the World Series and we want to be sure that whatever that schedule and progression looks (like) makes sense for him,” Cherington said.

It seemed to be a debate between Skenes and Crews for the top pick. It didn’t take long for Crews to come off the board after hitting .426 with 18 home runs while playing center field for the Tigers. Crews had a 26-game hitting streak as part of his standout season for the Tigers and finished his career at LSU by reaching base in each of his final 75 college games.

Crews said he’s never been to Washington, but saw plenty of the Nationals while growing up and watching Bryce Harper.

“Seeing him in a Nationals uniform, it

was pretty awesome,” Crews said. “I’m going to play my game and hopefully have as much impact as him. ... He’s just a complete player.”

Crews is the first college position player taken by Washington with its first pick since Anthony Rendon in 2011.

“A guy we’ve watched since he was in high school,” Nationals president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo said. “He’s the type of guy that we want here in Washington. He’s a terrific person. He’s got great character. He’s very competitive and he’s a winner.”

Four LSU players

total were selected on the first day, with right-handed pitchers Ty Floyd (No. 38 by Cincinnati) and Grant Taylor (No. 51 by the Chicago White Sox) also picked.

Detroit selected high school outfielder Max Clark from Franklin, Indiana, at No. 3. Clark was the Gatorade national player of the year after hitting .646 with six homers and 33 RBIs during his high school season.

But the first round

was tilted to college players, with 17 of the 28 selections.

Florida outfielder Wyatt Langford went No. 4 to Texas, and high school outfielder Walker Jenkins, from Oak Island, North Carolina, went fifth to Minnesota.

Oakland took college shortstop Jacob Wilson, the son of former major league shortstop Jack Wilson, from Grand Canyon at No. 6.

Wake Forest righthander Rhett Lowder went No. 7 to Cincinnati, Kansas City selected high school catcher Blake Mitchell, from Sinton, Texas, at No. 8, and Colorado picked Tennessee right-hander Chase Dollander.

The top 10 concluded with Miami selecting high school righty Noble Meyer from Jesuit High School in Portland, Oregon.

The first round ended with Houston taking Nebraska shortstop Bryce Matthews at No. 28, but only after Commissioner Rob Manfred had to pause due to boos about the mention of the Astros.

Seattle was the only team with three picks

in the first 39 selections after becoming the first team to be awarded an extra promotion incentive pick under the new collective bargaining agreement. That pick was the result of Julio Rodríguez winning AL Rookie of the Year last season and getting a full year of major league service. Seattle used that incentive pick to take high school outfielder Jonny Farmelo, from Chantilly, Virginia. Seattle also selected high school shortstops Colt Emerson, from New Concord, Ohio, at No. 22 and Tai Peete, of Sharpsburg, Georgia, at No. 30.

The New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers each had their first picks dropped by 10 spots for going more than $40 million over the luxury tax threshold last year. The Mets picked 32nd and Dodgers 36th.

The Mets took high school shortstop Colin Houck from Lilburn, Georgia, at No. 32 overall and the Dodgers picked high school outfielder Kendall George from Humble, Texas, at No. 36.

Wimbledon: A mix

Continued from B1

second only to Roger Federer’s men’s record 58. He will next face Andrey Rublev for a spot in the semifinals.

IN WOMEN’S play, Mirra Andreeva, a Russian qualifier who is still only 16 years old, had been showing her maturity throughout the first week of the Wimbledon tournament but things went awry on Monday. The teenager had won all six of her matches on grass to reach the fourth round at the All England Club but she let a big lead over 25th-seeded Madison Keys slip away in a 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2 loss on No. 2 Court.

Andreeva took the first set and led 3-0 in the second — winning nine of 10 games in one stretch — before Keys turned things around. Frustrated at one point, Andreeva threw her racket and received a warning from Swedish chair umpire Louise Azemar Engzell.

In the final game, Andreeva slipped while going for a ball and the racket again went flying out of her hand.

Engzell docked the Russian a point for a second thrown racket, giving Keys a match point. Andreeva argued the call, pleading her case.

“I didn’t throw the racket. I fell,” Andreeva told Engzell. “I slid and then I fell.”

The call stood, however, and Keys then finished off the match to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time since 2015.

“Coming out here, you know that she’s a really great player. But you don’t want to be the player that loses to her for her

to get to her first quarter,” Keys said on court. “I’ve fallen short a few times and it’s great to be back in the quarterfinals here at Wimbledon.”

Keys has reached the semifinals at the other three Grand Slam tournaments, including a run to the final at the U.S. Open in 2017, but her only other quarterfinal appearance at the All England Club ended at that stage.

Keys will next play Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated No. 21 Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-0. The second-seeded Sabalenka won the Australian Open this year and has a 16-1 record in major tournaments in 2023.

Defending champion Elena Rybakina also reached the quarterfinals. She advanced when Beatriz Haddad Maia retired from their match with a lower back injury with Rybakina leading 4-1.

Also in the men’s tournament, Chris Eubanks of the United States reached the quarterfinals in his first Wimbledon appearance, beating fifth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas 3-6, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. He will next face third-seeded Daniil Medvedev, who advanced when Jiri Lehecka retired from their match with the Russian leading 6-4, 6-2.

Also on Monday, two-time Wimbledon champion Czech Petra Kvitova lost to 2022 finalist Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, 6-0, 6-3.

At the Register’s deadline, top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz of Spain was playing 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini of Italy, and Grigor Dmitrov of Bulgaria and battling Hoger Rune of Denmark.

Speedway: A hit Friday

Continued from B1

starting spot, was #22 Brian McGowen. Rounding out the line-up, taking 5th, was #66 Ethan Isaacs. Humboldt Speedway will be off this weekend for the final Hutch Nationals.

The action returns July 21 with Ray’s Metal Depot B Mods, Extrusions Inc. Midwest Mods, Home Savings Bank Factory Stocks, USRA Tuners and your ARMI Contracting USRA Modified all rearing to go.

Team USA hoists their goalkeeper Matt Turner (1) in extra time in a penalty shootout during a CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-final soccer match against the Canada, Sunday, July 9 in Cincinnati. AP PHOTO/MICHAEL CONROY

Sepp Straka wins John Deere Classic in final round

SILVIS, Ill. (AP) — Sepp Straka won the John Deere Classic on Sunday with a final-round 9-under 62 that could have been much better, making double bogey on the final hole but taking the title by two shots when Brendon Todd and Alex Smalley were unable to catch him.

The 30-year-old Austrian who played in college at Georgia won for the second time on the PGA Tour, moved to No. 27 in the world and increased his chances of representing Europe in the Ryder Cup this fall in Rome. He shot 73 on Thursday but followed with rounds of 63, 65 and 62.

“At my best, I do feel like I can compete with anybody. Obviously the last three days I could have competed with just about anybody in the world, but growing up I never would have thought I would have a chance to even play on the PGA Tour,” Straka said. This is all just a big dream come true.” Straka, who teed off

an hour ahead of the final group, started birdie-eagle and made four more birdies on the front nine to turn in 7-under 28 at TPC Deere Run. He made par on the par-5 10th hole but ran off four birdies in a row, none from longer than 14 feet. At that point, Straka was 11 under for the day and 23 under for the tournament, need-

ing to play the final four holes in 1 under to shoot 59. Paul Goydos shot golf’s magic number in the first round in 2010 at TPC Deere Run “I wasn’t going to change my game plan or strategy for the 59,” Straka said. “The goal was still to keep the same game plan and try to finish and win a golf tournament. As fun as the 59 would be, I think

winning the golf tournament is always more fun.”

Straka made routine pars on Nos. 15 and 16 and failed to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker on the par-5 17th, missing a 9-footer for birdie. On the par-4 18th, he hooked his approach from 181 yards into the pond next to the green, leading to a 6 and a

21-under 263 total.

“I hit the ball really solid, but I just pulled it way left of my target,” Straka said. “So, yeah, it was an unfortunate time for a bad swing, but thankfully it didn’t hurt me.”

Straka went to the driving range to stay loose for a possible playoff. Todd and Smalley, playing in the final group, had plenty of holes to match him, with Todd getting closest when he birdied the par-4 14th hole to reach 20 under. But Todd bogeyed the par-3 16th and hit a sloppy wedge into the par-5 17th for another par.

“Obviously Sepp went out there and played an unbelievable round. Hats off to him. Really happy for him. He is a friend of mine,” said Todd, who also played at Georgia.

Smalley was 19 under after his birdie on No. 14 but three-putted for par on the 17th. Both players needed to hole their approaches on the 18th and neither came close. They fin-

ished at 19 under.

Smalley said he didn’t know what Straka was doing ahead of him until broadcaster Colt Knost gave him a heads-up.

“I actually had no idea what was going on. I didn’t look at all, and that was my plan,” Smalley said. “If it wasn’t enough, then it wasn’t enough, and Sepp deserves to win with a 62. That’s incredible playing.”

Ludvig Aberg closed with a 63 to tie for fourth, the Swede’s best finish in four starts as a professional after an outstanding college career at Texas Tech. He was 18 under alongside Adam Schenk (68).

“I expected it to be a lot of fun, but it’s even more fun than I thought it would be,” Aberg said of life as a pro.

Cameron Young, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 19 in the world and the 36hole leader, closed with a 68 and was part of a group of seven players at 16 under.

Chris Paul, introduced by Warriors, reveals motivation

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Chris Paul worked out with new teammate Stephen Curry in Atlanta on Sunday morning before traveling to Las Vegas. His assessment of the session: They didn’t miss too many shots.

Evidently, Paul’s time with the Golden State Warriors is off to a flying start. The veteran point guard revealed more than a few things in his first official interview session as a member of the Warriors: He isn’t ready to concede that he’s no longer a starter, he doesn’t expect this to be his final season as

a player and he gleans the same joy from the game now as he did when he was a kid.

And as for how it’ll all fit, he doesn’t expect that to be a problem.

“Not to like sound crazy or whatnot, but at the end of the day, it’s basketball,” Paul said. “You know, it’s not brain surgery. I’m going into a situation with a bunch of guys who’ve been playing together for a long time.”

Paul got traded twice this summer, first from Phoenix to Washington as part of the move that sent Bradley Beal to the Suns, and then again to Golden State as part of

USA: Advances in Gold Cup

Continued from B3

The U.S.-Panama winner on Wednesday at San Diego advances to the championship match on July 16 against Mexico or Jamaica at Inglewood, California.

The Americans have reached 12 straight Gold Cup semifinals. Going to a shootout for the first time since losing to Panama in the 2015 Gold Cup thirdplace game, the Americans improved to 5-4 in games decided by penalty kicks, including 5-2 in competitive matches. They had not won a shootout since beating Panama in the 2005 Gold Cup final.

Vázquez had put the U.S. ahead with a header from DeJuan Jones’ looping cross. In his home stadium where he plays for Cincinnati, Vázquez scored his fourth international goal and third goal of the tournament. He had entered in the 73rd minute.

Vitória tied the score with his fifth international goal. Robinson was called for the penalty by Mexican referee Marco Ortíz after a video review of a

ball bouncing off the defender’s arm while Robinson was challenging Rowe. Ortíz declined to award a penalty after a video review of a ball off Robinson’s arm in first-half stoppage time, Shaffelburg gave Canada the lead when he picked up a loose ball near midfield and dribbled past Ferreira. From just inside the penalty area, Shaffelburg sent a shot that deflected off a calf of defender Matt Miazga for his first international goal. Turner lofted the ball from midfield into the penalty area. Miazga centered a header to Jordan Morris, who headed the ball in front. Dayne St. Clair made a leg save on Busio, but the shot deflected off defender Kennedy and in for an own goal. In the opening game, Jamaica beat Guatemala 1-0 on a 51st-minute goal by Amari’i Bell. The defender scored from a Demarai Gray pass with a right-foot shot from 8 yards for his first international goal. Jamaica will play Mexico at Las Vegas on Wednesday.

the move that sent Jordan Poole to the Wizards.

It’s a move that the Warriors hope leads to both short- and longterm gains. The 38-yearold Paul can still play; the 12-time All-Star averaged 13.9 points and 8.9 assists this past season for Phoenix, effective still in his 18th season in the league.

He’s also not under contract after this coming season. Poole is entering a four-year deal; the big-spending Warriors just couldn’t keep all their highest-paid players together given the constraints of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. “I’ve been fortunate enough to play on three USA teams, ‘06, ‘08 and 2012,” Paul said. “It’s highIQ basketball, guys that play off reads and whatnot, and what you learn is you figure it out. Everybody don’t have

the answers right now. We’ll practice, I’m sure there’s going to be some things that I’ve got to learn, some things that they’ve got to learn about me, but that’s the case with any team.”

He has appeared in 1,214 regular-season games and another 149 in the playoffs, and has started every single one of them. But it obviously seems unlikely that he would supplant guards Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson in Golden State’s starting lineup.

So, at 38 years old and about to enter his 19th NBA season, Paul could find himself in a new position. But there is an obvious tradeoff, since the Warriors will almost certainly be considered a title-contender going into next season after winning four championships in the last decade — and Paul has never gotten his championship. He went to the NBA Finals with

Phoenix in 2021, but the Suns blew a 2-0 series lead and lost to Milwaukee in six games. “It’ll be a conversation for us when camp starts. ... I think we’ll figure all that stuff out,” Paul said.

The histories of Paul and the Warriors have long been intertwined. Paul has scored more points against Golden State than he has any other team – 1,172, which is 14 more than he scored against the Los Angeles Lakers. He’s played 18 playoff games against them, tied for his most against any opponent; he’s also played against San Antonio 18 times in the postseason.

Among active players, including playoffs, nobody has played more games or has more assists against the Warriors than Paul does, and LeBron James and James Harden are the only active players with more points

against Golden State.

And there’s the history that Paul probably wishes he could forget, how two of his best shots at a championship were thwarted by the Warriors. In 2018, Paul and the Houston Rockets had a 3-2 series lead in the Western Conference finals before he got hurt, missed the final two games and Golden State prevailed — on the way to the NBA title. And in 2019, the Warriors beat Paul and the Rockets again, that time in the West semifinals before ultimately falling to Toronto in the NBA Finals.

He said even his family can’t believe he’s with the Warriors now.

“It is what it is,” Paul said. “Sports.”

The Warriors will be seeking a fifth title in 10 years this coming season, and Paul has never won a ring. But when asked if that was his sole motivation for still

See WARRIORS | Page B6

8 kids a day are accidentally killed or injured by FAMILY FIRE.

FAMILY FIRE is a shooting involving an improperly stored gun, often found in the home. ENDFAMILYFIRE.org

Sepp Straka analyzes the 10th hole green during the third round of the PGA Tour Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club on Saturday, July 4, 2020. MIKE MULHOLLAND/MLIVE.COM

Impasse: This is why hotels were invented

Dear Carolyn: My sister and I are my mom’s only children; both of us are women in our 40s. One of us is single with no children; the other is married with four children. Each holiday, the two guest rooms at my mom’s house become a point of contention for one of us. The single sister is told the sleeping arrangement available to her is a couch or air mattress. The marriedwith-children sister is given both guest bedrooms. The single sister doesn’t feel it’s fair for her to sleep on a couch or air mattress when her nieces and nephews get a bed, even though it’s only for a night or two. Should the married sister give up one of the bedrooms, or should the single sister just suck it up and sleep on an air mattress?

— A Mattress Impasse A Mattress Impasse: The prevailing “should” here applies to all the adults: to put an immediate stop to any of

Carolyn Hax

this “the single sister is told” business. Wow.

The sisters can resolve it between themselves if the mother refuses to budge. The sister who gets the better deal is in an especially strong position to say, “[Single sister] always gets the air mattress, and it’s time we came up with a new, more respectful arrangement.” The amount of goodwill in a gesture like that is worth a crap night of sleep on an air mattress for the gesturer, and I say this as someone who guards her sleep with something resembling lunacy.

But my answer isn’t about who specifically does or doesn’t belong on the couch. Any arrangement can potentially make sense. My

answer is only this: Adults who love and respect each other don’t stand for systems where one of them always gets the broken cookie.

Instead, they talk. They listen. They offer suggestions. They get creative. Or they don’t budge but validate in abundance: “Kids and parents have a valid claim to beds, on the assumption nobody wants to be around us when we’re all sleepdeprived and screaming” — if the kids are little, it is indeed grueling — “but the day our family outgrows this demanding stage, you get the best room going forward into eternity, along with our undying thanks.” Or something like that.

Point is, this one-ortwo-night room problem hints at a (possibly lifelong) scoring system that’s impossible for one sister to win, and the losing sister is the only one who seems to notice she always loses, much less minds

Itchiness may have many causes

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 76 and have been bothered by sensitive skin, usually dryness on my back and itchiness on my ears.

My dermatologist prescribed medications for my itchy back and ears; however, it does not really stop the recurrence of the itchiness. I started to have an itchy scalp, and I do not know if this was caused by hairspray or shampoo.

Other than dryness of the skin, what could be the possible cause of the itchiness? Could it be eczema? I asked my dermatologist, and he did not give me a definitive answer. — N.D.

ANSWER: Atopic dermatitis (commonly referred to as eczema) is a

CRYPTOQUOTES

B D P G P Z G P E T

J P Z N B K M N R

I N G M Z F P I

Y K B D T N B Z

B P G G K J R P Q P X B D .

— E K P B U I F D P

Saturday’s Cryptoquote: Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance?

— Phyllis Diller

Dr. Keith Roach

To Your Good Health

common cause of scalp itching and may also affect the ears. However, the list of possibilities is long and includes fungal infections (tinea capitis); other inflammatory conditions like seborrheic dermatitis (which is a frequent cause of dandruff); contact dermatitis (hair care products are the usual culprits); and psoriasis. My textbook lists 30 other lesscommon causes.

Your dermatologist has a great advantage over me, since he

has done an exam, but sometimes even an experienced dermatologist can’t tell the exact diagnosis just by an exam. A trial of medication (often starting with skin hydration and moisturizers, but many times including a topical steroid cream) can be helpful in both treatment and diagnosis. Occasionally, a skin scraping or skin biopsy is necessary to be sure of the diagnosis.

GOING ON VACATION?

Want your paper stopped or held?

that she does, and she apparently believes she either can’t advocate for herself or won’t be heard regardless. That’s the problem.

Ideally, you can get a solution started by pointing it out to family members distracted by other things: “I would like to talk about the holiday sleeping arrangements at Mom’s. Erfteen years of couch duty is one thing, but a system that can’t be questioned is worse.” People willing to recognize the validity of each sister’s interests will at least listen with an open mind. Even if the outcome is to stick to the original plan, it’ll be by mutual agreement, not preferential reflex.

If you’re the designated couch sister and they refuse you so much as a conversation about it? Hotel. I mean it. Honor yourself, even if it means weeks of ramen to afford it. You can’t make your family treat you well, but you can make sure you’re not around for them to mistreat you.

MUTTS

by Patrick McDonell

ZITS by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

BEETLE BAILEY by Mort Walker

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by Chris Browne

MARVIN by Tom Armstrong

HI AND LOIS by Chance Browne

Ruling expected Tuesday in runner Semenya’s human rights appeal

By GERALD IMRAY The Associated Press

The European Court of Human Rights is expected to deliver what could be the final word Tuesday in Olympic champion runner Caster Semenya’s yearslong legal challenge against rules that force her and other female athletes to lower their natural hormone levels through medical intervention to be allowed to compete in women’s track and field races.

The testosterone limits have effectively put a stop to Semenya’s career by barring her from running in her favored 800 meters event — where she is a two-time Olympic champion and threetime world champion — since 2019.

The South African athlete has refused to follow the rules and take medication to artificially lower her testosterone. She says the regulations enforced by the sport’s governing body, World Athletics, are discriminatory and violate her right to freely compete in women’s sports despite her being legally identified as female at birth and identifying as female her entire life.

Semenya has also pointed out what she says is the irony of being told to take artificial substances to be allowed to run, in a sport that has strict rules against doping.

Now 32 years old and sidelined from the sport, Semenya has already lost appeals at sport’s highest court in 2019 and at Switzerland’s supreme court in 2020, leading her to take her case to the European Court of Human Rights.

The judgment expected Tuesday from the European rights court is seen as likely to be her last legal avenue to overturning the rules.

Semenya’s case has been at the forefront

of the highly contentious, complex and divisive issue of sex eligibility in sports for nearly 15 years since she emerged on the international track scene as a teenager in 2009. It has been connected to the fight over the inclusion of transgender women in female sports, but Semenya’s case is different to that issue even if there is some crossover.

WHAT IS SEMENYA’S CASE?

Semenya’s case at the European Court of Human Rights is against the government of Switzerland for not protecting her rights when its supreme court ruled against her over the rules three years ago.

Her lawyers argued in their submissions to the Strasbourg, Francebased European court that her rights have been violated because she has been discriminated against and denied an “effective remedy” to that discrimination in her previous legal challenges.

Semenya’s highly

complex case, which meshes ethical and scientific arguments into one highly-emotive issue over fairness in sports, would set a precedent for other athletes affected.

The core of her argument is that she has always been legally identified as female and should be allowed to compete in women’s sports, even if she has a testosterone level that is higher than the typical female range. Semenya says her testosterone should be considered a genetic gift in the same way as, for example, an athlete’s height or a swimmer’s long arms.

While World Athletics can’t challenge her legal gender, it says Semenya has a medical condition that makes her “biologically male” and her resulting high testosterone gives her an unfair advantage in the same way as a male competing in women’s sports. World Athletics says it needs rules to address that.

The “biologically male” assertion by World Athletics pro-

voked an angry response from Semenya in what has been a bitter battle between the two for over a decade. IS THIS THE SAME ISSUE AS TRANSGENDER WOMEN COMPETING IN SPORTS?

No, although the issues are intertwined in some ways. Semenya is not transgender.

World Athletics accepts that Semenya was legally identified as female at birth but says she has one of several conditions that are known as differences in sex development, where she has the typical male XY chromosome pattern and a testosterone level that is up in the typical range for a male.

World Athletics and other sports cite high testosterone as the factor giving transgender women who have transitioned from male to female an unfair athletic advantage in women’s competitions, and the reason for track authorities announcing a ban on transgender women competing in female events in March.

World Athletics is enforcing its same argument over the unfair advantage provided by testosterone by compelling Semenya and others with similar conditions who were assigned female at birth to reduce their hormone level down to below a specified mark. The rules have been tightened over the years and the testosterone levels deemed acceptable have been lowered. Also, while the rules initially only required Semenya and others to suppress their testosterone if they wanted to compete in races from 400 meters to the mile, they were expanded this year to include all female track events, meaning Semenya can’t compete in any top-level race now without reducing her testosterone.

World Athletics prescribes three methods for athletes to do that: taking birth control pills, using hormone-blocking injections or having surgery.

ARE THERE OTHER ATHLETES AFFECTED?

Yes, most recently Namibian runner Christine Mboma, who won the silver medal in the 200 meters at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 having been excluded from competing in the 400-meter race because of the same rules. Another 800-meter runner, Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi, has said she is also affected by the rules. She won silver behind Semenya in the 800 race at the 2016 Olympics.

World Athletics says there are “a number” of other elite female athletes who fall under the rules, although it won’t disclose their names to protect their medical confidentiality. All of them are now required to suppress their testosterone if they want to compete at top meets that include the Olympics and world championships.

WHAT COULD THIS JUDGMENT MEAN?

If Semenya loses again, it’s likely the end of the road for her legal challenge. A victory for Semenya would still make it unclear how any rollback of the rules would play out.

The European rights court’s ruling would apply to Switzerland as a country and its supreme court ruling on the issue. But Semenya needs an appeal to succeed at the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport to then get the Monaco-based World Athletics organization to think about withdrawing the rules.

What might be significant is that when the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected Semenya’s first appeal in 2019 on a narrow 2-1 ruling by judges, it accepted the rules were discriminatory but proportionate in a sports context to ensure fairness.

Semenya is effectively asking the European Court of Human Rights if it agrees that discrimination is sometimes allowed.

New York Times disbands sports department; to rely on The Athletic

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN The Associated Press

The New York Times is disbanding its sports department and will rely on coverage from The Athletic, a website it acquired last year for $550 million.

The decision impacts more than 35 people in the sports department, according to The New York Times. Journalists on the sports desk will move to other roles within the newsroom and no layoffs are planned.

“Though we know this decision will be disappointing to some,

we believe it is the right one for readers and will allow us to maximize the respective strengths of The Times’s and The Athletic’s newsrooms,” New York Times Co. Chairman A.G. Sulzberger and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien wrote Monday in a letter to staff. They say sports coverage will be expanded under the shift.

“Under our plan, the digital homepage, newsletters, social feeds, the sports landing page and the print section will draw from even more of the approximately 150 stories The Athletic pro-

Warriors: Add Paul

Continued from B4

playing, Paul insisted that he just still loves the game — and intends to keep playing for multiple years.

“I get a chance to play basketball every day and say, ‘that’s my way of life,’” Paul said. “So you’re saying,

‘why do I do it?’ For the same reason I did it when I was 4 or 5 years old. You know what I mean? I wouldn’t spend the time training and working out and hooping and being away from my family if I didn’t love it. That hasn’t changed.”

duces each day chronicling leagues, teams and players across the United States and around the globe,” they wrote. Sports writers for The New York Times have won several Pulitzer Prizes over the years,

including Arthur Daley in 1956 in the column, “Sports of the Times;” Walter Wellesley (Red) Smith in 1976 for commentary and Dave Anderson in 1981 for commentary.

The New York Times

Co. announced early last year that it was buying The Athletic as part of

a strategy to expand its audience of paying subscribers.

Caster Semenya of South Africa wins the women’s 800m during the IAAF World Championships at London Stadium on Aug. 13, 2017. GIULIANO BEVILACQUA/ABACA PRESS/TNS