80jili net NoneTOUCHING tributes for the late Jimmy Carter have started to flood in for the "extraordinary leader" who has died aged 100. Joe Biden and Donald Trump have led the heartfelt messages to the beloved former president whose death was confirmed by his family earlier today. Carter, the oldest president in history , and the only one to become a centenarian, has been survived by five other American commander-in-chiefs who have all left touching homages to the great man. President-elect Donald Trump remembered Carter for his leadership and urged Americans to keep the late president's loved ones in their " hearts and prayers". Trump wrote on Truth Social: "The challenges Jimmy faced as President came at a pivotal time for our country and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans. "For that, we all owe him a debt of gratitude. "Melania and I are thinking warmly of the Carter Family and their loved ones during this difficult time." He later posted a second statement which acknowledged the pair's political and philosophical differences but praised Carter's clear love for America. "He truly loved and respected our Country, and all it stands for," Trump added. "He worked hard to make America a better place, and for that I give him my highest respect. "He was a truly good man and, of course, will be greatly missed. He was also very consequential, far more than most Presidents, after he left the Oval Office." The man Trump is set to replace in the White House in just a few weeks time in Joe Biden described Carter as an "extraordinary leader, statesman, and humanitarian". The fellow Democrat and close friend posted the loving tribute alongside his wife Jill. They said: "Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend." "He was a man of great character and courage, hope and optimism. We will always cherish seeing him and Rosalynn together." Joe, 82, has now taken on the title as the oldest living president following the passing of Carter. Barack Obama - the youngest living American leader - commended the late humanitarian with his wife Michelle. They said: "Maranatha Baptist Church will be a little quieter on Sundays, but President Carter will never be far away — buried alongside Rosalynn next to a willow tree down the road, his memory calling all of us to heed our better angels. "Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from this remarkable man." Former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary also praised Carter's commitment to service. They praised him for his "long and good life" and applauded his belief in faith and selflessness. The final remaining president, George W. Bush, joined his wife Laura to call Carter “a man of deeply held convictions” who “dignified the office ". US vice president Kamala Harris made a similar statement praising Carter's "deep and abiding faith in God, America and in humanity". “He reminded our nation and the world that there is strength in decency and compassion," she continued. "I had the privilege of knowing President Carter for years. I will always remember his kindness, wisdom, and profound grace." Tributes to the statesman even came from overseas as the UK's Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer lauded Carter's service. The British PM said he “redefined the post-presidency with a remarkable commitment to social justice and human rights at home and abroad”. King Charles III also described the former US president as a “committed public servant” who “devoted his life to promoting peace”. Sir Tony Blair soon followed with a powerful statement. It read: "Jimmy Carter's life was a testament to public service; from his time in office, and the Camp David Accords, to his remarkable commitment to the cause of people and peace round the world over the past 40 years. "I always had the greatest respect for him, his spirit and his dedication. "He fundamentally cared and consistently toiled to help those in need." Carter , the 39th president of the United States , has died after nearly two years in hospice care. His son Chip Carter confirmed the former president died at his Georgia home on Sunday around 3:45 pm ET. Carter peacefully passed away surrounded by his family who paid an emotional tribute to the former leader. His son Chip said: “My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love. “My brothers, sister, and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. "The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.” Public events will commemorate Carter in Atlanta and Washington, D.C. and a state funeral will be held, The Carter Center confirmed. The former president decided to live out the remainder of his days at his home in Plains, Georgia . Carter, the beloved Democrat and Nobel Peace Prize winner, had experienced several health issues in recent years including melanoma that spread to his liver and brain. He became the longest-living president and the first to make it 100 years old. Carter's death came over a year after the death of his wife, Rosalynn Carter , who died on November 19, 2023, at age 96. Two days before her death, Rosalynn joined her husband in hospice care at their home in Georgia. The former first lady and fierce advocate for mental health was diagnosed with dementia in early 2023. Before his death, Jimmy Carter was the first to pay tribute to his wife of 77 years, "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished. "She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me."DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has reaffirmed her ruling that Tesla must revoke Elon Musk’s multibillion-dollar pay package Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick on Monday denied a request by attorneys for Musk and Tesla’s corporate directors to vacate her ruling earlier this year requiring the company to rescind the unprecedented pay package. McCormick also rejected an equally unprecedented and massive fee request by plaintiff attorneys , who argued that they were entitled to legal fees in the form of Tesla stock valued at more than $5 billion. The judge said the attorneys were entitled to a fee award of $345 million. The rulings came in a lawsuit filed by a Tesla stockholder who challenged Musk’s 2018 compensation package. McCormick concluded in January that Musk engineered the landmark pay package in sham negotiations with directors who were not independent. The compensation package initially carried a potential maximum value of about $56 billion, but that sum has fluctuated over the years based on Tesla’s stock price. Following the court ruling, Tesla shareholders met in June and ratified Musk’s 2018 pay package for a second time, again by an overwhelming margin. Defense attorneys then argued that the second vote makes clear that Tesla shareholders, with full knowledge of the flaws in the 2018 process that McCormick pointed out, were adamant that Musk is entitled to the pay package. They asked the judge to vacate her order directing Tesla to rescind the pay package. McCormick, who seemed skeptical of the defense arguments during an August hearing, said in Monday’s ruling that those arguments were fatally flawed. “The large and talented group of defense firms got creative with the ratification argument, but their unprecedented theories go against multiple strains of settled law,” McCormick wrote in a 103-page opinion. The judge noted, among other things, that a stockholder vote standing alone cannot ratify a conflicted-controller transaction. “Even if a stockholder vote could have a ratifying effect, it could not do so here due to multiple, material misstatements in the proxy statement,” she added. Meanwhile, McCormick found that the $5.6 billion fee request by the shareholder’s attorneys, which at one time approached $7 billion based on Tesla’s trading price, went too far. “In a case about excessive compensation, that was a bold ask,” McCormick wrote. Attorneys for the Tesla shareholder argue that their work resulted in the “massive” benefit of returning shares to Tesla that otherwise would have gone to Musk and diluted the stock held by other Tesla investors. They value that benefit at $51.4 billion, using the difference between the stock price at the time of McCormick’s January ruling and the strike price of some 304 million stock options granted to Musk. While finding that the methodology used to calculate the fee request was sound, the judge noted that the Delaware’s Supreme Court has noted that fee award guidelines “must yield to the greater policy concern of preventing windfalls to counsel.” “The fee award here must yield in this way, because $5.6 billion is a windfall no matter the methodology used to justify it,” McCormick wrote. A fee award of $345 million, she said, was “an appropriate sum to reward a total victory.” The fee award amounts to almost exactly half the current record $688 million in legal fees awarded in 2008 in litigation stemming from the collapse of Enron. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Paris Hilton is aging backwards au naturel. The 43-year-old reality star and DJ claimed on the “Zach Sang Show” Friday that she is “working on” aging in reverse without the help of any cosmetic features. “I feel really proud that I’m all natural,” she told host, 31. “I’ve stayed out of the sun. I’ve never done any Botox, injectables, no surgery, nothing.” The “Paris in Love” star explained that she has maintained her youthful glow thanks to her mom Kathy Hilton’s skincare advice. “My mom told me when I was 8 years old, ‘Paris, stay out of the sun,'” she recalled. “And then she taught me this amazing 10-step skincare routine. So I’ve literally been doing that since [I was] 8.” Paris also noted she built an incredible in-home spa called the Sliving Spa. It features “the most epic” LED light therapy, offers Hydrafacials and cryotherapy, and hosts a hyperbaric chamber. A hyperbaric chamber is used for oxygen therapy that supplies the person inside with 100 percent oxygen, which can heal damaged tissue, according to the Cleveland Clinic . She previously called her spa “the fountain of youth” while speaking to People . Paris has been maintaining that she has never gone under the knife or gotten injections for years. In 2015, the “Simple Life” star claimed to New You magazine that she’s never had cosmestic surgery . “I even asked my dermatologist if I should do [Botox], and he’s like ‘I refuse to do it to you ... your skin is so perfect. I will not do it to you until you need it, and I don’t know if you ever will,'” she told the publication. She noted that she’s not against cosmetic procedures — they’re not just for her. In 2018, Paris reaffirmed her anti-aging secret while speaking to Page Six, telling us, “Stay out of the sun and always keep your skin hydrated.” In June of that year, the “Stars Are Blind” singer came out with a skincare line called ProD.N.A, which she said contained “all the ingredients that have worked to keep [her] skin healthy and looking great.” The brand appears to be defunct, as its Instagram page has not been active since 2020 and the products don’t appear to be purchasable through the provided links. However, Paris released a press release last week, revealing that her lifestyle company 11:11 Media is teaming up with beauty industry leader Guthy-Renker to create a joint company called 11:11 Beauty. “Now with 11:11 Beauty, partnering with Guthy-Renker has allowed me to bring my vision for beauty and wellness to life, blending cutting-edge technology with transformative results,” she said in the release. “The past couple of years have been a journey of passion and innovation and I can’t wait for the world to experience our first collection that will be unveiled Spring 2025.”

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CHICAGO — With a wave of her bangled brown fingertips to the melody of flutes and chimes, artist, theologian and academic Tricia Hersey enchanted a crowd into a dreamlike state of rest at Semicolon Books on North Michigan Avenue. “The systems can’t have you,” Hersey said into the microphone, reading mantras while leading the crowd in a group daydreaming exercise on a recent Tuesday night. The South Side native tackles many of society’s ills — racism, patriarchy, aggressive capitalism and ableism — through an undervalued yet impactful action: rest. Hersey, the founder of a movement called the Nap Ministry, dubs herself the Nap Bishop and spreads her message to over half a million followers on her Instagram account, @thenapministry . Her first book, “Rest Is Resistance: A Manifesto,” became a New York Times bestseller in 2022, but Hersey has been talking about rest online and through her art for nearly a decade. Hersey, who has degrees in public health and divinity, originated the “rest as resistance” and “rest as reparations” frameworks after experimenting with rest as an exhausted graduate student in seminary. Once she started napping, she felt happier and her grades improved. But she also felt more connected to her ancestors; her work was informed by the cultural trauma of slavery that she was studying as an archivist. Hersey described the transformation as “life-changing.” The Nap Ministry began as performance art in 2017, with a small installation where 40 people joined Hersey in a collective nap. Since then, her message has morphed into multiple mediums and forms. Hersey, who now lives in Atlanta, has hosted over 100 collective naps, given lectures and facilitated meditations across the country. She’s even led a rest ritual in the bedroom of Jane Addams , and encourages her followers to dial in at her “Rest Hotline.” At Semicolon, some of those followers and newcomers came out to see Hersey in discussion with journalist Natalie Moore on Hersey’s latest book, “We Will Rest! The Art of Escape,” released this month, and to learn what it means to take a moment to rest in community. Moore recalled a time when she was trying to get ahead of chores on a weeknight. “I was like, ‘If I do this, then I’ll have less to do tomorrow.’ But then I was really tired,” Moore said. “I thought, ‘What would my Nap Bishop say? She would say go lay down.’ Tricia is in my head a lot.” At the event, Al Kelly, 33, of Rogers Park, said some of those seated in the crowd of mostly Black women woke up in tears — possibly because, for the first time, someone permitted them to rest. “It was so emotional and allowed me to think creatively about things that I want to work on and achieve,” Kelly said. Shortly after the program, Juliette Viassy, 33, a program manager who lives in the South Loop and is new to Hersey’s work, said this was her first time meditating after never being able to do it on her own. Therapist Lyndsei Howze, 33, of Printers Row, who was also seated at the book talk, said she recommends Hersey’s work “to everybody who will listen” — from her clients to her own friends. “A lot of mental health conditions come from lack of rest,” she said. “They come from exhaustion.” Before discovering Hersey’s work this spring, Howze said she and her friends sporadically napped together in one friend’s apartment after an exhausting workweek. “It felt so good just to rest in community,” she said. On Hersey’s book tour, she is leading exercises like this across the country. “I think we need to collectively do this,” Hersey explained. “We need to learn again how to daydream because we’ve been told not to do it. I don’t think most people even have a daydreaming practice.” Daydreaming, Hersey said, allows people to imagine a new world. Hersey tells her followers that yes, you can rest, even when your agenda is packed, even between caregiving, commuting, jobs, bills, emails and other daily demands. And you don’t have to do it alone. There is a community of escape artists, she said of the people who opt out of grind and hustle culture, waiting to embrace you. The book is part pocket prayer book, part instruction manual, with art and handmade typography by San Francisco-based artist George McCalman inspired by 19th-century abolitionist pamphlets, urging readers to reclaim their divine right to rest. Hersey directs her readers like an operative with instructions for a classified mission. “Let grind culture know you are not playing around,” she wrote in her book. “This is not a game or time to shrink. Your thriving depends on the art of escape.” The reluctance to rest can be rooted in capitalist culture presenting rest as a reward for productivity instead of a physical and mental necessity. Hersey deconstructs this idea of grind culture, which she says is rooted in the combined effects of white supremacy, patriarchy and capitalism that “look at the body as not human.” American culture encourages grind culture, Hersey said, but slowing down and building a ritual of rest can offset its toxicity. The author eschews the ballooning billion-dollar self-care industry that encourages people to “save enough money and time off from work to fly away to an expensive retreat,” she wrote. Instead, she says rest can happen anywhere you have a place to be comfortable: in nature, on a yoga mat, in the car between shifts, on a cozy couch after work. Resting isn’t just napping either. She praises long showers, sipping warm tea, playing music, praying or numerous other relaxing activities that slow down the body. “We’re in a crisis mode of deep sleep deprivation, deep lack of self-worth, (and) mental health,” said Hersey. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from 2022 , in Illinois about 37% of adults aren’t getting the rest they need at night. If ignored, the effects of sleep deprivation can have bigger implications later, Hersey said. In October, she lectured at a sleep conference at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, where her humanities work was featured alongside research from the world’s top neuroscientists. Jennifer Mundt, a Northwestern clinician and professor of sleep medicine, psychiatry and behavioral sciences, praises Hersey for bringing the issue of sleep and rest to the public. In a Tribune op-ed last year, Mundt argued that our culture focuses too heavily on sleep as something that must be earned rather than a vital aspect of health and that linking sleep to productivity is harmful and stigmatizing. “Linking sleep and productivity is harmful because it overshadows the bevy of other reasons to prioritize sleep as an essential component of health,” Mundt wrote. “It also stigmatizes groups that are affected by sleep disparities and certain chronic sleep disorders.” In a 30-year longitudinal study released in the spring by the New York University School of Social Work, people who worked long hours and late shifts reported the lowest sleep quality and lowest physical and mental functions, and the highest likelihood of reporting poor health and depression at age 50. The study also showed that Black men and women with limited education “were more likely than others to shoulder the harmful links between nonstandard work schedules and sleep and health, worsening their probability of maintaining and nurturing their health as they approach middle adulthood.” The CDC links sleeping fewer than seven hours a day to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and more. Although the Nap Ministry movement is new for her followers, Hersey’s written about her family’s practice of prioritizing rest, which informs her work. Her dad was a community organizer, a yardmaster for the Union Pacific Railroad Co. and an assistant pastor. Before long hours of work, he would dedicate hours each day to self-care. Hersey also grew up observing her grandma meditate for 30 minutes daily. Through rest, Hersey said she honors her ancestors who were enslaved and confronts generational trauma. When “Rest Is Resistance” was released in 2022, Americans were navigating a pandemic and conversations on glaring racial disparities. “We Will Rest!” comes on the heels of a historic presidential election where Black women fundraised for Vice President Kamala Harris and registered voters in a dizzying three-month campaign. Following Harris’ defeat, many of those women are finding self-care and preservation even more important. “There are a lot of Black women announcing how exhausted they are,” Moore said. “This could be their entry point to get to know (Hersey’s) work, which is bigger than whatever political wind is blowing right now.” Hersey said Chicagoans can meet kindred spirits in her environment of rest. Haji Healing Salon, a wellness center, and the social justice-focused Free Street Theater are sites where Hersey honed her craft and found community. In the fall, the theater put on “Rest/Reposo,” a performance featuring a community naptime outdoors in McKinley Park and in its Back of the Yards space. Haji is also an apothecary and hosts community healing activities, sound meditations and yoga classes. “It is in Bronzeville; it’s a beautiful space owned by my friend Aya,” Hersey said, explaining how her community has helped her build the Nap Ministry. “When I first started the Nap Ministry, before I was even understanding what it was, she was like, come do your work here.” “We Will Rest!” is a collection of poems, drawings and short passages. In contrast to her first book, Hersey said she leaned more into her artistic background; the art process alone took 18 months to complete. After a tough year for many, she considers it medicine for a “sick and exhausted” world. “It’s its own sacred document,” Hersey said. “It’s something that, if you have it in your library and you have it with you, you may feel more human.” lazu@chicagotribune.com

By MARY CLARE JALONICK and STEPHEN GROVES, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell fell and sprained his wrist while walking out of a GOP luncheon on Tuesday, the latest in a series of medical incidents for him in recent years. McConnell, who is stepping down from his leadership post at the end of the year, was walking out of his weekly party lunch with Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso when he tripped and fell, Barrasso said, before walking back to his office on his own. Medical personnel were seen heading into his office minutes later. The longtime Republican leader , 82, also has a cut on his face, his office said, but “has been cleared to resume his schedule.” He did not attend a scheduled news conference immediately after the luncheon. Barrasso, the No. 3 Senate leader and a doctor, said McConnell was “fine” and “100 percent” alert after he tripped and fell. His fall came after he was hospitalized with a concussion in March 2023 and missed several weeks of work after falling in a downtown hotel. After he returned, he twice froze up during news conferences that summer, staring vacantly ahead before colleagues and staff came to his assistance. McConnell had polio in his early childhood and he has long acknowledged some difficulty as an adult in walking and climbing stairs. In addition to his 2023 fall, he also tripped and fell in 2019 at his home in Kentucky, causing a shoulder fracture that required surgery. McConnell has been in the Senate since 1984 and has been Republican leader since 2007. South Dakota Sen. John Thune will become Senate majority leader next year when Republicans retake the majority. Associated Press writers Farnoush Amiri and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report. Be civil. Be kind.None

Jimmy Carter death – updates: Trump pays tribute after former president’s death aged 100Lewandowski joins Ronaldo and Messi in the Champions League century club with goal No. 100

The Minnesota Vikings now sit at 14-2 after a dominating win over the Green Bay Packers . Yes, the score might have been 27-25, but the game didn't feel that close in the slightest. “close games” pic.twitter.com/nxcxIvsS7y The Vikings got ahead of the Packers by 17 points on two separate occasions and dominated the game from early on. It got stressful at the end but the Vikings found a way to do what they have done all season: get the win The game was really good for the Vikings and they continued to beat teams with a winning record. Kevin O'Connell gives injury updates on Pat Jones II and Aaron Jones Not everything was good for the Vikings. They had two players leave the game with injury with the first being Jones. "It's a right knee injury," said O'Connell. "Hopefully we avoided kind of a super long term injury, but I won't know much more than that until he gets fully evaluated. Expecting him probably to miss a little amount of time. Like I said, I don't know what that looks like right now. Jones injured the knee in the first half and didn't return. He's dealt with knee issues for a good portion of the season. What we don't know is if this injury was to the same knee or not. After the game, edge rusher Jonathan Greenard called out Packers tight end Tucker Kraft for the low hit that caused the injury. Dude motioned from 30 yards away to STILL cut him. Pathetic. Be a man block up high. @NFL get rid of this block PLEASE. https://t.co/x6XP1Us9ji The other injury was to the other Jones on the team at running back. He got stepped on during the game and tried to come back, but ultimately was pulled. "Aaron Jones did get a quad contusion at some point. He was working his way through it, had some really good runs, but we decided to kind of pull him. I thought Ty Chandler showing up, having some physical runs, getting downhill fresh. Pairing him with Cam there in the second half was a winning formula to then get some of those plays off either in tempo or some of the play-pass role." The Vikings were able to find a way to get production at running back without Jones, including a touchdown and the game-winning catch from Akers. Not having Jones against the Detroit Lions could loom large. This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

The latest exhibit at the Pop Cult Museum at PD's Hot Shop in Qualicum Beach follows skateboarding through the decades, from early homemade boards in the 1930s right to the present day. traces the evolution of skate culture, as well as the boards themselves — and how new technology influences the activity and vice versa. While the first commercial boards began to appear in stores in the late 1950s, children had already been making their own skateboards for decades. “A kid, usually the boy in the family, would get into some trouble because he would essentially steal the sister’s roller skates, or take his own roller skates,” said owner Peter Ducommun, better known as PD. “What you would do is disassemble the roller skate and reassemble some of the components onto a wooden piece.” Skateboarding evolved by mimicking surfing and was referred to as "sidewalk surfing" for a time, but by the mid-60s it had begun to step out of the shadow of surfing, with Patti McGee appearing on the cover of magazine in 1965 (the exhibit includes a copy). For a lot of children, a skateboard or bicycle offers that first taste of freedom — being able to venture further from home without mom and dad. But with that freedom also came derision from the public — people angry at skateboarders for riding on the sidewalk or trespassing and skating up and down the sloped walls of an empty pool. “In the early days we were told it was wrong and we were bad,” said Ducommun, who began skateboarding in the early 1970s. “When you’re trying to tell somebody, and particularly a young person, that they’re doing something bad and they know they’re not, well that just makes you do it twice as much.” Wider skateboards found popularity in the 70s to provide more stability as skaters became more interested in riding up and down the sides empty pools. “We knew that a swimming pool would be like riding a wave because you’re going up the wall and coming down," Ducommun said. "That was the inspiration for what would become half pipes and then skate park bowls and all of that.” Ducommun's very first board from 1976 is part of the exhibit and can be spotted by a yin yang decal — this was the logo for Great North Country Skateboards, before the name change to Skull Skates, Canada's oldest skateboard company. Humour, irreverence and mockery all became a big part of skater culture, Ducommun said, and one way that was expressed was through skateboard decals. “Skateboarders, we like to mock,” he added. “Happy faces and bright colours, but it was all kind of mockery.” One piece in the exhibit takes aim at the idea of skateboarders competing for awards, including the recent inclusion into the Summer Olympics. Ducommun mounted the body of a decapitated doll onto a football trophy, with a skateboard wheel in place of a head. “It’s more like an art form or a lifestyle,” he said. Skateboarding continues to change and evolve as new generations of skaters are introduced to it. “Every time you think it can’t get any crazier, as far as tricks and techniques and styles of riding, it does," Ducommun said. "But the reason it does is that people are not starting from zero, they’re starting from that whole thing that’s been built.” With work set to begin soon on a new skatepark in Qualicum Beach, Ducommun is optimistic the activity will continue to grow and even attract people to visit the town and check out the new facility. “There’s a whole group of people ready to just come up and really embrace it.” will be at the Pop Cult Museum until March. PD's Hot Shop is located at 164 Second Ave.Portugal winger Nani announces retirementColeen Rooney set to be new queen of daytime TV with HUGE pay deal after I’m A Celebrity final

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A scruffy little fugitive is on the lam again in New Orleans, gaining fame as he outwits a tenacious band of citizens armed with night-vision binoculars, nets and a tranquilizer rifle. Scrim, a 17-pound mutt that's mostly terrier, has become a folk hero, inspiring tattoos, t-shirts and even a ballad as he eludes capture from the posse of volunteers. And like any antihero, Scrim has a backstory: Rescued from semi-feral life at a trailer park and adopted from a shelter, the dog broke loose in April and scurried around the city until he was cornered in October and brought to a new home. Weeks later, he'd had enough. Scrim leaped out of a second-story window, a desperate act recorded in a now-viral video. Since then, despite a stream of daily sightings, he's roamed free. The dog’s fans include Myra and Steve Foster, who wrote “Ode to Scrim” to the tune of Ricky Nelson’s 1961 hit, “I’m a Travelin’ Man.” Leading the recapture effort is Michelle Cheramie, a 55-year-old former information technology professional. She lost everything — home, car, possessions — in Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and in the aftermath, found her calling rescuing pets. “I was like, ‘This is what I should be doing,’” Cheramie said. “I was born to rescue.” She launched Zeus’ Rescues, a nonprofit shelter that now averages 600 cat and dog adoptions a year and offers free pet food to anyone who needs it. She helped Scrim find the home he first escaped from. It was Cheramie's window Scrim leaped from in November. She's resumed her relentless mission since then, posting flyers on telephone poles and logging social media updates on his reported whereabouts. She's invested thousands of dollars on wildlife cameras, thermal sensors and other gear. She took a course offered by the San Diego Zoo on the finer points of tranquilizing animals. And she's developed a network of volunteers — the kind of neighbors who are willing to grid-search a city at 3 a.m. People like writer David W. Brown, who manages a crowd-sourced Google Map of all known Scrim sightings. He says the search has galvanized residents from all walks of life to come together. As they search for Scrim, they hand out supplies to people in need. "Being a member of the community is seeing problems and doing what you can to make life a little better for the people around here and the animals around you," Brown said. And neighbors like Tammy Murray, who had to close her furniture store and lost her father to Parkinson's Disease. This search, she says, got her mojo back. “Literally, for months, I’ve done nothing but hunt this dog,” said Murray, 53. “I feel like Wile E. Coyote on a daily basis with him.” Murray drives the Zeus' Rescues' van towards reported Scrim sightings. She also handles a tactical net launcher, which looks like an oversized flashlight and once misfired, shattering the van's window as Scrim sped away. After realizing Scrim had come to recognize the sound of the van's diesel engine, Murray switched to a Vespa scooter, for stealth. Near-misses have been tantalizing. The search party spotted Scrim napping beneath an elevated house, and wrapped construction netting around the perimeter, but an over-eager volunteer broke ranks and dashed forward, leaving an opening Scrim slipped through. Scrim's repeated escapades have prompted near-daily local media coverage and a devoted online following. Cheramie can relate. “We’re all running from something or to something. He's doing that too,” she said. Cheramie's team dreams of placing the pooch in a safe and loving environment. But a social media chorus growing under the hashtag #FreeScrim has other ideas — they say the runaway should be allowed a life of self-determination. The animal rescue volunteers consider that misguided. “The streets of New Orleans are not the place for a dog to be free,” Cheramie said. “It’s too dangerous.” Scrim was a mess when Cheramie briefly recaptured him in October, with matted fur, missing teeth and a tattered ear. His trembling body was scraped and bruised, and punctured by multiple projectiles. A vet removed one, but decided against operating to take out a possible bullet. The dog initially appeared content indoors, sitting in Cheramie's lap or napping beside her bed. Then while she was out one day, Scrim chewed through a mesh screen, dropped 13 feet to the ground and squeezed through a gap in the fence, trotting away. Murray said Cheramie's four cats probably spooked him. “I wholeheartedly believe the gangster-ass cats were messing with him,” Murray said. Cheramie thinks they may have gotten territorial. Devastated but undeterred, the pair is reassessing where Scrim might fit best — maybe a secure animal sanctuary with big outdoor spaces where other dogs can keep him company. Somewhere, Murray says, “where he can just breathe and be." Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Brook on the social platform X: @jack_brook96Ukraine must be placed in the “strongest possible position for negotiations” to end the war with Russia, Sir Keir Starmer has said. The Prime Minister insisted the UK will back Ukraine “for as long as it takes” as he made a speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet in London, but for the first time acknowledged the conflict could move towards a negotiated end. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has in recent weeks suggested he is open to a possible ceasefire with Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Kyiv and its European allies meanwhile fear the advent of Donald Trump’s return to the White House could result in American aid being halted. President-elect Trump has said he would prefer to move towards a peace deal, and has claimed he could end the conflict on “day one” of his time in power. As he attempts to strike up a good relationship with the incoming president, Sir Keir revealed he had told Mr Trump the UK “will invest more deeply than ever in this transatlantic bond with our American friends in the years to come”. In his speech at London’s Guildhall, the Prime Minister said there is “no question it is right we support Ukraine”, as the UK’s aid to Kyiv is “deeply in our self-interest”. Allowing Russia to win the war would mean “other autocrats would believe they can follow Putin’s example,” he warned. Sir Keir added: “So we must continue to back Ukraine and do what it takes to support their self-defence for as long as it takes. “To put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for negotiations so they can secure a just and lasting peace on their terms that guarantees their security, independence, and right to choose their own future.” Mr Zelensky told Sky News over the weekend he would be open to speaking with Mr Putin, but branded the Russian president a “terrorist”. He also suggested Ukrainian territory under his control should be taken under the “Nato umbrella” to try to stop the “hot stage” of the war with Russia. In a banquet speech focused on foreign affairs, the Prime Minister said it was “plain wrong” to suggest the UK must choose between its allies, adding: “I reject it utterly. “(Clement) Attlee did not choose between allies. (Winston) Churchill did not choose. “The national interest demands that we work with both.” Sir Keir said the UK and the US were “intertwined” when it came to commerce, technology and security. The Prime Minister added: “That’s why, when President Trump graciously hosted me for dinner in Trump Tower, I told him that we will invest more deeply than ever in this transatlantic bond with our American friends in the years to come.” He also repeated his commitment to “rebuild our ties with Europe” and insisted he was right to try to build closer links with China. “It is remarkable that until I met President Xi last month there had been no face-to-face meeting between British and Chinese leaders for six years,” the Prime Minister said. “We can’t simply look the other way. We need to engage. To co-operate, to compete and to challenge on growth, on security concerns, on climate as well as addressing our differences in a full and frank way on issues like Hong Kong, human rights, and sanctions on our parliamentarians,” he added. The Prime Minister said he wants Britain’s role in the world to be that of “a constant and responsible actor in turbulent times”. He added: “To be the soundest ally and to be determined, always, in everything we do. “Every exchange we have with other nations, every agreement we enter into to deliver for the British people and show, beyond doubt, that Britain is back.” Ahead of Sir Keir’s speech, Lord Mayor Alastair King urged the Prime Minister and his Government to loosen regulations on the City of London to help it maintain its competitive edge. In an echo of Sir Keir’s commitment to drive the UK’s economic growth, the Lord Mayor said: “The idealist will dream of growth, but the pragmatist understands that our most effective machinery to drive growth is here in the City, in the hands of some of the brightest and most committed people that you will find anywhere in the world.”