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How multilevel marketing schemes prey on vulnerable women, according to new book

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

Emily Lynn Paulson was a 33-year-old mother of five, married to a successful and supportive man and living a comfortable life in Seattle when a “friend” from the past reached out to her via Messenger. This friend was someone from high school with whom she really had no relationship, but Paulson was feeling lonely and isolated as a stay-at-home mom, so she agreed to get together for a glass of wine.That’s how Paulson stumbled into multilevel marketing (MLM) and it dominated her life for six and a half years. Sometimes called direct marketing or pyramid marketing, MLMs derive their revenue from non-salaried contractors who sell the company’s products or services to friends and family. The contractors’ earnings come from a multilevel commission system in which 96-99.7 percent of people selling for MLMs lose money. While Paulson was one of the few MLM success stories, it ultimately led to addiction and compromised her physical and mental health.Related: Sign up for our free Book Pages n...

Family travel 5: Exploring during the shoulder seasons

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

Lynn O’Rourke Hayes | (TNS) FamilyTravel.comTake advantage of the years when your travel plans are not limited by school holidays and summer vacation. You can explore with your toddlers or home-schooled kiddos during the shoulder seasons when crowds have diminished and deals may be possible.Here are five ideas to consider:1. Atlantis, Paradise Island, BahamasFor families that check into The Coral, the resort’s family-centric tower, an impressive level of luxury awaits within spacious rooms and suites. Compare notes with the Kids Concierge and in a flash, the dreams of mini-travelers (and their parents) will soon be a reality. From scheduling family swims with the dolphins to registering for Sea Squirts, an interactive marine program where youngsters can feed baby stingrays, sharks and schools of fish, the concierge is on hand to help create itineraries and smooth any bumps on the path to a memorable vacation. Ask about helping the Atlantis Aquarists guide Green Sea Turtle hatchlings...

Consumer Health: Reducing your risk of lung cancer

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

Laurel Kelly | (TNS) Mayo Clinic News NetworkLung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., accounting for about 1 in 5 of all cancer deaths, according to the American Cancer Society. Lung cancer claims more lives each year than colon, breast and prostate cancers combined. More than 238,000 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with lung cancer in 2023, and more than 127,000 people in the U.S. will die of the disease.Lung cancer typically doesn’t cause signs and symptoms in its earliest stages. Signs and symptoms typically occur when the disease is advanced and may include:— A new cough that doesn’t go away— Coughing up blood, even a small amount— Shortness of breath— Chest pain— Hoarseness— Losing weight without trying— Bone pain— HeadacheRisk factorsA number of factors may increase your risk of lung cancer. Some risk factors can be controlled, for instance, by quitting smoking. And other factors can’t...

Hawaii’s governor is rushing home from travel as Maui wildfires rage. Follow along for live updates

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

Follow along for live updates of wildfires that are racing across part of Maui in Hawaii, destroying sections of a historic town on the island and forcing some to flee to the relative safety of the ocean, where the Coast Guard rescued them. The fires forced evacuations in some areas, including the popular tourist spot of Lahaina Town. The National Weather Service says Hurricane Dora, which is passing south of the island chain at a safe distance, was partly to blame for strong winds driving the flames, knocking out power and grounding firefighting helicopters. HAWAII GOVERNOR RETURNING TO ISLANDS, SAYS SOME LOSS OF LIFE IS EXPECTEDHawaii Gov. Josh Green, who was scheduled to return to Hawaii from personal travel on Aug. 15, instead planned to return immediately, his office said Wednesday. He was expected to be back Wednesday evening. Green has been in contact with the White House, and is preparing to request emergency federal assistance sometime in the next two days, once he has a be...

A fire at one of Britain’s quirkiest pubs that was later demolished is being treated as arson

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Police in central England said Wednesday they were treating a weekend fire at one of Britain’s quirkiest pubs as arson, two days after it was demolished before an investigation into the blaze had even been completed.Staffordshire Police said in a statement that following an assessment from a specialist fire investigator, they believe the fire on Saturday at the 18th-century Crooked House pub in the village of Himley, 130 miles (210 kilometers) northwest of London, “may have been started deliberately.”The outpouring of anger among local residents following the blaze was compounded on Monday when the shell of the pub — widely revered as “Britain’s wonkiest” as a result of its slumping foundation and sloping walls — was flattened by a mechanical digger. Given that the cause of the fire, which occurred two weeks after it had been sold by pub and hotel operator Marston’s to a local firm, had yet to be determined, questions have been raised over how the pub ended up be...

Romanian hostage freed from Burkina Faso after 8 years in captivity, Romania’s foreign ministry says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — A Romanian citizen who was abducted in northeast Burkina Faso in 2015 where he was working at a mine, was released Wednesday, Romania’s foreign ministry said.Iulian Ghergut, who was 39 years old when a militant group linked to al-Qaida captured him at a mine where he was working as a security officer, was released and is safe on Romanian soil, the ministry said in a statement.The press release thanked “all external partners, especially the Moroccan authorities, for the important support given in order to solve this extremely complicated case.” It provided no further details.Ghergut was the first hostage recorded in the West African nation since the early 2000s. His kidnapping in 2015 came at a time when extremist armed groups became active across the Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa.Fighters linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group have waged a violent insurgency in Burkina Faso for seven years. The violence has killed thousands of people and divide...

Child wounded when shots fired into home; 3rd shooting of a child in St. Louis area since Monday

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Someone fired several shots into a house and wounded a 9-year-old child Wednesday, the third shooting involving a child this week in the St. Louis area, police said.The shooting happened around 9:40 a.m. Wednesday in north St. Louis County. County police said the child was hospitalized with what they described as non-life-threatening injuries.On Monday, 7-year-old Darnell Macon died while playing with a loaded gun in a pickup truck in the St. Louis County town of Berkeley. The boy’s grandfather was charged with child endangerment and armed criminal action.Also Monday, 5-year-old Dariyah Lathan was shot and killed in Belleville, Illinois, near St. Louis. Police have not released information about the circumstances of the shooting, but said they do not believe a suspect is at large. The Associated Press

Firefighter Zak Muise’s family grateful for support before Penticton, B.C., memorial

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

PENTICTON, B.C. — The family of firefighter Zak Muise, who died last month fighting the Donnie Creek wildfire in B.C.’s northeast, says an outpouring of support has meant a lot to his family ahead of a memorial service to honour him today.Muise’s sister, Allison Tackaberry, says Muise’s death devastated his family, calling it a sudden and tragic loss.The memorial service and a procession are being held today in Penticton, B.C., home base of the firefighting contractor that Muise worked for.RCMP say Muise, 25, from Waterford, Ont., died on July 28 when his heavy-duty ATV rolled over a steep drop on a gravel road in a remote area about 150 kilometres north of Fort St. John.The city of Penticton says the procession and memorial will take place at Skaha Lake Park and will involve the RCMP, Penticton Fire Department and Muise’s colleagues from Big Cat Wildfire.Muise was the fourth firefighter to die on duty in Canada this summer fighting wildfires.Last month, 19-y...

At least 27 migrants found dead in the desert near Tunisian border, Libyan government says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — At least 27 suspected migrants from sub-Saharan Africa have died in recent days in the country’s western desert near the border with Tunisia, Libyan authorities said.In a statement posted on Facebook, Libya’s Interior Ministry said late Tuesday the bodies were discovered recently near the border and that a forensic team had been deployed to the area. In the same post, the ministry published pictures of African migrants receiving treatment from Libyan medical teams.Mohamed Hamouda, a spokesperson for the Libyan government, on Wednesday confirmed the discovery of the bodies to The Associated Press, but declined to provide any further details.In recent months, Tunisian security forces began removing some migrants from coastal areas, busing them elsewhere and, migrants say, dumping some of them in the desert. Earlier this month, Tunisia’s Interior Minister admitted that small groups of sub-Saharan migrants trying to enter the country are being pushed back into the des...

Brazil’s Amazon Summit ends with a call to protect the world’s rainforests, but no measurable goals

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

BELEM, Brazil (AP) — Brazil’s Amazon Summit closed Wednesday with a roadmap to protect tropical rainforests that was welcomed as an important step in countering climate change, but without the concrete commitments sought by some environmentalists to end deforestation.Leaders and ministers from eight Amazon nations signed a declaration Tuesday in Belem, Brazil, that laid out plans to drive economic development in their countries while preventing the Amazon’s ongoing demise “from reaching a point of no return.”Several environmental groups described the declaration as a compilation of good intentions with little in the way of measurable goals and timeframes. However, it was lauded by others, and the Amazon’s umbrella organization of Indigenous groups celebrated the inclusion of two of its main demands.“It is significant that the leaders of the countries of the region have listened to the science and understood the call of society: the Amazon is in danger, and we do not have much time t...