Evansville, In.:  Rounding out a tiring stretch of six games in nine days, including three separate road trips, the Thunderbolts gave it their all but fell just short to the Macon Mayhem and their goaltender Josh Boyko, 4-2 on Sunday night at Ford Center with almost 5,000 in attendance.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game will be on Friday, January 5th against the Quad City Storm, puck drop at 7:00pm CT.
                The Mayhem benefited from two lucky bounce goals in the first five minutes to take a 2-0 lead, as a Derek Contessa lob went off a Thunderbolts defenseman and into the net at 3:00, and a shot from Tanner Nagel bounced in off another Evansville defenseman shortly afterward at 4:24.  Evansville got on the board at 10:11, as Dmitri Yushkevich rocketed a shot into the net unassisted on a power play to cut Evansville’s deficit to 2-1.  However, Macon offered a response as Jake Goldowski deflected a shot in at 12:07 to make it 3-1 Macon.
After a scoreless second period, Michael McChesney made it a 4-1 game, wiring a shot to the top corner at 4:29.  Late in regulation, Myles Abbate got one back for Evansville on the power play from Scott Kirton and Bair Gendunov, but despite outshooting Macon 46-33, the Thunderbolts could not get more than two goals on Josh Boyko in the 4-2 loss, ending the month of December with a still-strong 6-4-2 record and remain in 8th place ahead of Knoxville and Macon.  Despite the tough loss, the crowd of almost 5,000 was loud throughout the evening, and enjoyed a thrilling postgame fireworks show to round out the night.
Yushkevich and Abbate each finished with one goal, while Hayden Lavigne stopped 29 of 33 shots faced.  The Thunderbolts and Mayhem meet again on Friday, March 15th at Macon Coliseum.
FOOTNOTE: Â EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
She knows that slavery was the primary cause of the U.S. Civil War.
She just thinks that many people who vote in Republican presidential primaries either are ignorant regarding basic facts of American history or would prefer to pretend Americans never enslaved other human beings. And she wants their votes.
That is why she failed so miserably the other day on what, not so long ago, would have been a gimme question on an elementary school history quiz.
At a town hall in Berlin, New Hampshire, an attendee asked Haley what caused the Civil War.
Haley’s response was maybe one cut above gibberish.
“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run, the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,†she said.
“I think it always comes down to the role of government and what the rights of the people are. And I will always stand by the fact that I think government was intended to secure the rights and freedoms of the people. It was never meant to be all things to all people. Government doesn’t need to tell you how to live your life. They don’t need to tell you what you can and can’t do. They don’t need to be a part of your life.â€
So, the Civil War was about giving birth to a libertarian political party?
What toxic nonsense.
The truth is that, in the Civil War, it was the South that relied on the power of government to strip Black Americans of every liberty. The rebels who claimed to fight for freedom fought for the “freedom†to enslave other human beings.
This twisting of both history and logic has tragic consequences that linger today.
The white nationalists and other bigots former President Donald Trump tied to the Republican Party—the party of Lincoln—take it as an article of faith that they’re being oppressed if they are denied the opportunity to oppress other human beings.
If Haley’s difficult campaign to slide past Trump for the GOP presidential nomination is to succeed, she needs at least some of those MAGA votes to move her way. That’s why she was willing to sound like an idiot who never had cracked a book not written in crayon.
At least for a moment.
The backlash to her comments was so immediate and so fierce from both Democrats and Republicans that she quickly backtracked. At campaign events and during a radio interview, she acknowledged that slavery was the cause of the conflict that ended the lives of one out of every four American males between the ages of 15 and 45 over four years.
Not that Haley’s retreat did much to quell the furor.
One of her rivals, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, called her response to the initial question “word salad.â€
Maybe he meant it as a compliment.
DeSantis delivered his own historical head-scratcher not long ago. He said slavery benefited the people who were enslaved because the work helped them develop necessary job skills.
That’s right.
A guy who aspires to lead the party of the Great Emancipator tried to get people to believe human slavery really was an early vocational training program.
It would be one thing if Haley and DeSantis were morons who didn’t know any better.
But they’re not.
Haley is a graduate of Clemson University. DeSantis did his undergraduate work at Yale and then studied law at Harvard.
Doubtless, those distinguished institutions didn’t teach U.S. history as if it were the stuff of fantasy.
No, these two ambitious politicians utter complete rubbish as a political calculation. They know such balderdash conforms with the prejudices of many voters—and they would rather confirm those prejudices than educate the people who hold them.
That’s politics.
But it isn’t leadership.
Leadership seeks to prod people to confront difficult realities. For that reason, great leaders do not run or hide from the truth.
The fact is that this country’s history with race is a tortured one. All too often, we Americans have failed to uphold the principles that we consider most sacred—starting with the notion that all human beings are entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
We cannot make our peace with either past or present until we face that reality.
And it doesn’t seem like Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis want to help with that.
FOOTNOTE: Â John Krull is director of Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism and publisher of TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students. The views expressed are those of the author only and should not be attributed to Franklin College.
The new year has finally come and we pray that every reader has a beautiful year and fulfill all their dreams. It is when we look back at the past year, celebrate, and prepare for a fresh start.
Saying goodbye to the ups and downs of the previous year, we’re ready for 2024 and all the possibilities it brings.
ST. CHARLES, Mo. – University of Southern Indiana sophomore guard/forward AJ Smith (Edwardsville, Illinois) scored a career-high 27 points and led the Screaming Eagles to a 73-62 victory over Lindenwood University Sunday afternoon at Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Missouri. The Eagles rise to 4-11 overall and start OVC play 1-1, while the Lions are 6-8 overall, 0-1 OVC.  The victory marked the 50th USI career win for Eagles’ Head Coach Stan Gouard. Gouard is 50-41 at USI and 277-158 for his coaching career.  USI was the fast out of the gate, posting a 15-5 lead before seven minutes were gone in the game. The Eagles, who were four-of-seven from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, and five-of-six from the stripe in the opening run, was led by junior forward Nick Hittle (Indianapolis, Indiana), who had six of the 15 points during the opening run.  The Lions would battle back, responding with a 12-1 run, and took a 17-16 lead with 8:14 before halftime. The squads would trade buckets and leads from that point before USI grabbed a 31-30 lead at the intermission on a runner in the lane by junior guard Jeremiah Hernandez (Chicago, Illinois) with eight seconds on the clock.  The second half would belong to USI and Smith, who scored 18 of his 27 points in the final 20 minutes.  After the lead changed hands 12 times in the first 13 minutes of the final half, the Eagles took control with a 7-1 run to lead 60-55 with 6:48 to play. Junior forward Jack Mielke (Downers Grove, Illinois) gave the Eagles the lead for good with a pair of free throws, while Smith scored the final five points of the run to put USI up five.  Through all of the lead changes in the second half, Smith kept the Eagles moving forward with 11 of the first 24 USI points. Sophomore forward Kiyron Powell (Evansville, Indiana) also contributed to keeping USI in the contest with an additional six points.  The Lions would cut the USI advantage to one, 60-59, with 5:06 left, but that would be close as they would be the rest of the contest. The Eagles, who are 7-0 all-time against Lindenwood, sealed the 73-62 win with a 13-3 surge in the final five minutes, led by six points from Hernandez.  Overall for the game, Smith would posts his career-high and game-high 27 points on nine-of-16 from the field, four-of-seven from beyond the arc, and five-of-eight from the stripe. He also tied for a game-high with nine rebounds, missing his seventh double-double of the season by one.  Hernandez followed Smith in the scoring and rebound columns with 16 points and eight rebounds. The junior guard was four-of-10 from the field and eight-of-12 from the line.  Powell rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 points off the bench. The sophomore was a blistering five-of-six from the field.  As a team, USI dominated the glass with a 43-25 advantage in rebounds and held the Lions to 36 percent from the field (18-50).  The Eagles offensively shot 45.1 percent from the field in the game (23-51), 51.7 percent in the second half (15-29).  Next Up For USI: USI opens the 2024 calendar year with a pair of OVC home games at Screaming Eagles Arena next week. The Eagles will be hosting Tennessee State University Thursday for Fan Appreciation Night and Tennessee Tech University Saturday for Faculty Appreciation Night.  Both games are scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff. The USI Women’s Basketball will lead off the doubleheaders at 5 p.m. each night.  TSU is 8-7 to start the year and 1-1 after the first weekend of OVC play. The Tigers, who 2-4 in the last six games, opened OVC play at home with a 91-75 loss to the University of Tennessee at Martin before bouncing back to defeat the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, 90-82.  USI and TSU split its OVC games last year with both winning on the others home court. The Tigers took the first meeting, 80-76, at Screaming Eagles Arena, while the Eagles won in Nashville, 93-81.   The Golden Eagles of TTU are 5-10 in 2023-24 and 0-2 in the OVC. TTU, which is also 2-4 in the last six games, start conference action with an 81-75 loss to Little Rock and an 81-73 loss to UT Martin at home last week.  TTU took both meetings with USI last year, winning in Cookeville, Tennessee, 84-69, and at Screaming Eagles Arena, 82-79. Â
The Indiana Department of Child Services investigated 308 child deaths in 2022 and determined 61 were a result of abuse or neglect.
The Annual Report of Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities in Indiana details the circumstances leading to each fatality and highlights the risk factors that put children in danger.
According to the report, 17 of the fatalities were due to abuse, and 44 were the result of neglect. More than two-thirds of the fatalities involved a child 3 years old or younger, which is consistent with national trends.
Causes of death were taken from state death certificates. Death by weapon, including body part, was the leading cause of death, listed in 36 percent of cases. Unsafe sleeping arrangements, caregiver substance abuse, failure to supervise a child (especially near a body of water), driving while intoxicated and poisoning or overdose also were factors.
DCS reviews all child fatalities that meet the following circumstances:
For children under 3 years of age: The death is sudden, unexpected or unexplained, or involves allegations of abuse and neglect.
For children age 3 or older: The death involves allegations of abuse or neglect.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2023 – Valley Meats, LLC, a Coal Valley, Ill. establishment, is recalling approximately 6,768 pounds of raw ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.
The raw ground beef items were produced on December 22, 2023. The following products are subject to recall [view labels]:
12-lb. box package containing “ANGUS GROUND BEEF PATTIES†with product code 1208PL, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamps between 7:36:38AM to 08:00:48AM.
16-lb. box packages containing “ANGUS GROUND BEEF PATTIES†with the product code 1253PL, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamps between 7:25:50 AM to 08:00:36AM.
28-lb. box package containing “Ground Beef Patties†with product code 72287, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamps between 12:44:00PM to 12:54:32PM.
28-lb. box packaging containing “Ground Beef Patties†with product code 72287, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamp 1:02:55PM.
24-lb. box packaging containing “Ground Beef Patties†with product code 72284, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamps between 1:10:09PM to 1:10:17PM.
13.5-lb. box packaging containing “GROUND BEEF PATTIES†with product code 1103, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, Use By 01/15/2024, and time stamps between 1:41:55:55PM to 1:57:53PM.
20-lb. box packaging containing “GROUND BEEF†with product code 8515, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, and time stamps between 1:16:24PM to 1:31:15PM.
40-lb. box packaging containing “GROUND BEEF†with product code 8020VP, Run No. 3356GRDB, date code 231222, and time stamps between 1:34:54PM to 2:00:49PM.
The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 5712†inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to distributor locations in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan for further distribution to restaurants and other institutional users.
The problem was discovered when the establishment notified FSIS that samples of ground beef products submitted to a third-party laboratory for microbiological analysis tested positive for E. coli O157:H7. There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products.
Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider. E. coli O157:H7 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause dehydration, bloody diarrhea and abdominal cramps 2–8 days (3–4 days, on average) after exposure the organism. While most people recover within a week, some develop a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). This condition can occur among persons of any age but is most common in children under 5-years old and older adults. It is marked by easy bruising, pallor, and decreased urine output. Persons who experience these symptoms should seek emergency medical care immediately.
FSIS is concerned that some product may be in institutional or restaurant refrigerators or freezers. Restaurants and institutions are urged not to serve these products. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.
FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.
FSIS advises all consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160 F. The only way to confirm that ground beef is cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperature, https://www.fsis.usda.gov/safetempchart.
