Singapore News Channel, Singapore News Network

On Sunday broadcast of MSNBC�s �Live,� New York Governor Andrew Cuomo commented on five people being stabbed in an attack at a synagogue in New York�s Rockland County.

Cuomo said, �We tend to treat these situations as isolated episodes, but really if we just connect the dots, we have a pattern of hate in this nation that is only getting worse. We�ve seen almost weekly attacks on people based on race, color, creed. It�s hate-motivated. Apparently, there was another shooting in Texas today in a church. We�ve seen attacks against African-Americans, Latinos, LGBTQ community. And let�s call it what it is and let government act because this can destroy this nation. It is corrosive. It�s an American cancer.�

He continued, �It starts at the top, and then it goes on to a point where it becomes viral across this nation. And it is now viral. And you see it coming to the surface in different manifestations from coast to coast. And we�re comforted treated it as isolated episodes, but there�s a pattern to all of this, and it spells hate.�

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OCEAN CITY � Who is best suited to gauge public sensibilities could become the key in the ongoing civil suit challenging Ocean City�s topless ordinance after the plaintiffs in the case last week filed a motion to exclude the town�s elected officials from testifying as witnesses.

Two weeks ago, Ocean City officials filed a motion for summary judgment in the civil suit filed against the resort in 2018 challenging an ordinance that prohibits women from going topless in the same public areas where men are allowed to go shirtless. On the same day, the plaintiffs in the case filed a motion to exclude Mayor Rick Meehan and Council Secretary Mary Knight from testifying as expert witnesses.

From the beginning, Ocean City officials have contended the notion of allowing female toplessness offends the sensibilities of most residents and visitors to the family-oriented resort. In a hearing on the plaintiffs� request for a preliminary injunction last December, resort officials presented evidence of hundreds of emails, letters and phone calls bearing out that sentiment. Ocean City has contended the Mayor and Council, as leaders and residents of the resort, have an innate understanding of the public�s sensibilities on the topless issue.

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The extravagant cost of higher education in the United States is a hotly debated topic these days, and for good reason. An entire generation of Americans are entering the workforce already handcuffed financially by, in the majority of cases, tens of thousands of dollars of student debt. Consequently, it�s never felt harder for the average young adult fresh out of college to establish themselves, purchase a home, and adequately provide for their family. In fact, according to a new survey of 2,000 recent college graduates, 80% see their student loans as a �life sentence� that they will be paying off until the day they die.

In all, 89% consider their student debt, at the very least, as a major financial burden.

The survey, commissioned by Splash Financial, also asked participants � broken up into 1,000 undergraduate and 1,000 postgraduate degree holders � about the sacrifices they�ve had to make because of their student debt. Among the most common responses were skipping a social event to save money (39%), starting a side hustle for supplementary income (39%), serious budgeting (38%), and taking a job they really didn�t want in order to pay bills (36%).

On a rather depressing note, 36% even said they had skipped a family member or loved one�s important life event (wedding, birth, funeral) because they couldn�t afford travel costs on top of their student loan payment that month. Additionally, 35% say they are living in a dangerous neighborhood all to save a few bucks on rent each month.

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Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) reacted to the successful U.S. airstrike on Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Iraq on Thursday evening by complaining that Congress was not consulted in advance about it.

In a statement released by the Speaker�s office on Thursday evening, Pelosi demanded an immediate briefing.

“..Tonight�s airstrike risks provoking further dangerous escalation of violence. America � and the world � cannot afford to have tensions escalate to the point of no return.

“The Administration has conducted tonight�s strikes in Iraq targeting high-level Iranian military officials and killing Iranian Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani without an Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iran. Further, this action was taken without the consultation of the Congress.

“The full Congress must be immediately briefed on this serious situation and on the next steps under consideration by the Administration, including the significant escalation of the deployment of additional troops to the region…”

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Civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) said on Sunday that he has been diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer and will undergo treatment soon.

�I have been in some kind of fight � for freedom, equality, basic human rights � for nearly my entire life. I have never faced a fight quite like the one I have now,” the congressman said in a statement detailing his prognosis on Sunday afternoon.

�This month in a routine medical visit, and subsequent tests, doctors discovered Stage IV pancreatic cancer. This diagnosis has been reconfirmed,” he continued.

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Actress Rose McGowan tweeted an apology to Iran hours after it was announced that President Trump had ordered the strike that killed Qassim Soleimani.

Soleimani, an Iranian leader responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American soldiers, was killed by U.S. forces on Thursday as part of the culmination of weeks of escalating hostilities between the two nations that included the killing of an American contractor and an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Iraq.

In a tweet posted early Friday, McGowan, 46, apologized to Iran on behalf of most of the American people for Trump�s decision to kill Soleimani. She wrote, �Dear Iran, The USA has disrespected your country, your flag, your people. 52% of us humbly apologize. We want peace with your nation. We are being held hostage by a terrorist regime. We do not know how to escape. Please do not kill us.�

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Iran was not seeking war but remained unafraid of any potential future conflict, a top Iranian commander said on Thursday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said Tehran orchestrated anti-U.S. protests in Iraq.

Trump accused Iran of driving mass demonstrations at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday and said Tehran would be held responsible.

Iran has rejected the accusation while demanding in future the U.S. address the country �correctly.�

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[Related: Gen. Suleimani ‘Addressed’ by Katyushin Rocket in Baghdad Strike Later That Day...]

(WBFF) — On Wednesday Governor Larry Hogan�s office released a letter showing that Maryland will continue to accept refugees in response to a new executive order from U.S. President Donald Trump.

This is the letter that was released by Governor Hogan’s office:

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Hi Joe;

Just a quick question.. How did they bypass everyone and construct the chicken reservoir in the Porter Mill area
when everyone opposed it???
I guess the planning/zoning dep’t can do what they please… I thought Culver opposed it.

Happy New Year