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☆ Whatever happened to airline food? /// Why the golden age of airplane food disappeared /// Why you don’t get served full meals on flights anymore
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —If you took an American Airlines flight in the 1960s, you’d be wined and dined from the Coach-class “Royal Coachman” menu. “Meal service was once a point of pride,” said Henry Harteveldt, who covers the travel industry for Atmosphere Research Group. Meal service was a big focus of [competition] because entertainment options were more limited,” Harteveldt said. The September 11 attacks accelerated the decline of free airline meals. Airline meals had been the brunt of jokes and criticism for decades, but now people miss them.

Persons: you’d, ”, Henry Harteveldt, Peter Stackpole, Robert Crandall, Blaise Waguespack, It’s, Beef, ” Harteveldt, Rob Welham, Molly Brandt Organizations: New, New York CNN, American Airlines, Atmosphere Research, Pan American Airline, Shutterstock Airlines, Carriers, Singapore Airlines, Michelin, Embry, Riddle Aeronautical University, ”, Smithsonian, ” Airlines, “ Airlines, British Airways, Camera, Airlines, Continental Airlines, North America, mojo Locations: New York, Daytona Beach , Florida, Delta, North

☆ Plane skids off runway in Senegal, injuring at least 10
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing 737 of Transair en route to Bamako skids off runway at Dakar International Airport in Senegal on May 09, 2024. A plane with dozens of passengers skidded off a runway before takeoff at Senegal's main airport on Thursday, injuring at least 10 people and bringing the facility temporarily to a halt, the airport and Senegalese transport ministry said. Night-time videos shared on social media showed passengers running away from a plane whose left wing appeared to be on fire. The airport said 78 passengers were on board and 11 people were wounded in the accident, including four serious injuries. The transport ministry said the plane was carrying 79 passengers and reported 10 people were wounded, including one of the plane's two pilots.

Persons: Blaise Diagne Organizations: Boeing, International, Air Senegal Locations: Bamako, Senegal, Mali

☆ Boeing Plane Goes Off Runway in Senegal, Leaving at Least 10 Injured
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Christine Hauser | More About Christine Hauser | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At least 10 people, including the pilot, were injured when a Boeing passenger plane overran the runway while aborting takeoff from Senegal’s international airport in the outskirts of Dakar on Thursday, the country’s transport minister said. Emergency services were deployed to evacuate the passengers, and those who were injured were receiving medical care, Mr. Ndiaye said. Footage from social media and published by The Associated Press showed passengers going down emergency slides in the dark as one side of the aircraft was in flames. “Our plane just caught fire,” wrote Cheick Siriman Sissoko, a musical artist from Mali, in a post on Facebook, The A.P. He could not be reached by telephone later on Thursday.

Persons: Blaise, Malick Ndiaye, Ndiaye, ”, Siriman Organizations: Boeing, Air, Transair, Blaise Diagne, The Associated Press, Facebook Locations: Dakar, Air Senegal, Bamako, Mali

☆ Blaise Taylor: Texas A&M analyst indicted in poisoning deaths of girlfriend, unborn baby
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Jamiel Lynch | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Blaise Taylor, an analyst at Texas A&M and son of the school’s associate head coach, was arrested in Utah on Thursday after being indicted in the 2023 deaths of his girlfriend and her unborn child, according to Nashville police. He was held without bail Friday night at the Cache County Jail in Logan, Utah, jail records show. She was rushed to a hospital that night, after Taylor called 911 and told them “Benning appeared to be having an allergic reaction,” according to police. Trooper Taylor is now an associate head coach on offense and running backs coach at Texas A&M. “We also would like to extend our prayers and support to Coach Trooper Taylor, Dr. Evelyn Taylor and their family as they navigate this extremely difficult time.”

Persons: CNN — Blaise Taylor, Taylor, ”, Taylor “, Benning, Adam Reese, Wednesday’s, “, Trooper Taylor, Mike Elko, Dr, Evelyn Taylor Organizations: CNN, Texas, Nashville police, Arkansas State, Nashville Police Department, Authorities, Police, Homicide, Medical, Office, Nashville, Baylor, Oklahoma State, Auburn Locations: Utah, Cache, Logan , Utah, Lebanon, Baylor , New Mexico, Tulane , Tennessee, ” Texas

☆ Why checked bag fees are at record highs
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Checked bag fees are hitting record highs as airlines up the ante. So an airline can save $75 million in tax fees off its $1 billion revenue in domestic checked-bag fees. The introduction of bag fees was also a response to the rise of low-price carriers like Spirit in the United States and Ryanair in Europe. But airlines kept the bag fees in place and even raised them in an effort to make up for the lost revenue from change fees. Bag fees have been a political punching bag.

Persons: they’ve, Gary Leff, ”, Henry Harteveldt, Blaise Waguespack, Sen, Mary Landrieu, ” Leff, Pete Buttigieg, Leff, “ Organizations: New, New York CNN, United Airlines, American Airlines, JetBlue, Alaska Airlines, Airlines, Department of Transportation, Delta SkyMiles American Express, Airlines ’, “ Airlines, Atmosphere Research, Embry, Riddle Aeronautical University, Ryanair, The Transportation Department Locations: New York, Denver, Dallas, Daytona Beach , Florida, United States, Europe

The Synod on Synodality, the sprawling meeting in Rome, has become a flashpoint among different factions of the church’s leadership. Attendees have a broad mandate to discuss the future of the church, including ordaining women as deacons and outreach to L.G.B.T.Q. Relatively progressive leaders, including those appointed by Pope Francis, see the synod as a hopeful moment that could lead to much-needed changes. Cardinal Blaise J. Cupich of Chicago, a close ally of Pope Francis, is among the 14 American bishops attending the meeting. But in a moment when the American church is especially polarized at the top, the synod is also laying bare the divide in the pews, and the scale of the challenge facing the pope.

Persons: Buś, Stan’s, Pope Francis, Cardinal Blaise J, Cupich Locations: St, Synodality, Rome, Chicago

☆ Air Senegal, Royal Air Maroc sign codeshare agreement
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Air Senegal planes are parked at Blaise Diagne International Airport amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Thies, Senegal, March 28, 2020. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDAKAR, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Air Senegal and Morocco's Royal Air Maroc on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding for code-sharing and other steps to deepen cooperation. Air Senegal said in statement the carriers would seek to increase connections and provide more options for passengers. "Royal Air Maroc and Air Senegal today are giving concrete expression to the desire of the highest authorities in our respective countries to develop this air bridge, in terms of both passenger and cargo transport," Air Senegal's CEO, Alioune Badara Fall, said. Reporting by Diadie Ba; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Cynthia OstermanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Zohra, Alioune, Diadie, Anait Miridzhanian, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Blaise Diagne, REUTERS, Rights, Air, Morocco's, Air Maroc, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Senegal, Thies, Air Senegal

☆ Cameroon Militants Set Cars on Fire, Shoot Passengers in Village Attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BUEA, Cameroon (Reuters) - Armed militants stopped cars, shot at passengers and set vehicles on fire during an attack on a village in Anglophone Cameroon's South West region on Thursday, residents and a Reuters reporter said. Separatists in minority English-speaking parts of Cameroon have been fighting to carve out an independent state called Ambazonia since 2017. They carry out attacks, kidnappings and killings in the North West and South West regions. Concerned-looking resident gathered around the blackened and bullet-ridden remains of a charred car in the village of Muea, in the South West region, on Thursday as two men pulled out a body wrapped in a blanket. Insurgents began fighting the Cameroonian military in 2017 after civilian protests calling for greater representation for the Francophone country's English-speaking minority were violently repressed.

Persons: Blaise Eyong, Sofia Christensen, Sandra Maler Organizations: Armed, Francophone Locations: BUEA, Cameroon, South West, North West, Muea

Turkey's Central Bank headquarters is seen in Ankara, Turkey in this January 24, 2014 file photo. Yet five foreign investors told Reuters that this week's rate hike signalled a new independence among policymakers who are serious about addressing unrelenting pressure on the currency and reining in inflation expectations. "It feels like they are correcting the mistakes they made with their first rate hike decisions," said Viktor Szabo, portfolio manager at abrdn in London. Erdogan, who has fired four central bank chiefs in four years, has said little about the rate hikes. Reuters GraphicsTurkish stock, Eurobond and CDS markets are more attractive targets this year and next, especially after the rate hike, investors and officials say.

Persons: Umit, Erdogan's unorthodoxy, Mehmet Simsek, Goldman Sachs, Tayyip Erdogan's, Viktor Szabo, Ola El, Van Eck, ERDOGAN, Erdogan, Simsek, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Cevdet Yilmaz, Blaise Antin, TCW, Kaan, Neuberger Berman, Jonathan Spicer, Marc Jones, Jorgelina, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Turkey's Central Bank, Finance, Goldman, Reuters, abrdn, Emerging Markets, Wall Street, JPMorgan, Reuters Graphics, CDS, Yeni, United Nations, International Monetary Fund, Thomson Locations: Ankara, Turkey, ANKARA, LONDON, New York, London, Van, Los Angeles, Reuters Graphics Turkish, Yeni Safak, Morocco, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Rosario

☆ Blaise Cendrars at the Morgan: A Modern Match of Poetry and Painting
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Jason Farago | More About Jason Farago | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Big Apple is a good place for reinvention, and the Swiss poet Frédéric-Louis Sauser had reason for a restart here in the spring of 1912. At 25 years old he’d washed up in New York Harbor, nearly penniless after trying his luck in Russia and Brazil. Henceforth he would be called Blaise Cendrars: a name for a poet of fire, a promise of ash (cendres) and art. “Blaise Cendrars: Poetry Is Everything,” at the Morgan Library & Museum, is one of the most appealing and eye-opening shows of the summer — a concentrated pop of free-spirited trans-Atlantic modernity, alive with rich color and typographical pyrotechnics. If you haven’t heard of Cendrars, you’re not alone; in an intro French poetry class you are more likely to encounter his good friend Guillaume Apollinaire, a more polished example of modern alienation and fractured style.

Persons: Frédéric, Louis Sauser, he’d, chucked, Sauser, ”, Blaise Cendrars, “ Blaise Cendrars, you’re, Guillaume Apollinaire Organizations: nickelodeon, First Presbyterian Church, Morgan Library & Museum Locations: Swiss, New York Harbor, Russia, Brazil, Greenwich Village, New York

☆ Rodolfo Pizarro: As US soccer goes crazy over Lionel Messi’s arrival, one Inter Miami player suffers brutal consequence of superstar’s signing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Ben Morse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Fans turned out in their droves to watch Lionel Messi’s official unveiling as an Inter Miami player. When Pizarro signed for Inter, he filled one of the club’s three ‘Designated Player’ spots. The rule is also known as the ‘Beckham Rule’ after David Beckham – now Inter’s co-owner – became the first designated player when he joined LA Galaxy in 2007. So, with Messi signing a contract reportedly worth between $50 to $60 million per year, the 35-year-old Argentine fills one of Inter’s designated player spots. Either Inter can look to move one of their designated players on or they can “buy down” a player’s contract.

Persons: CNN —, Lionel Messi’s, Rodolfo Pizarro, Pizarro, Beckham, David Beckham –, –, Messi, Ira L, Matías Almeyda, “, ”, Messi’s, Sergio Busquets, – Messi, Busquets, Josef Martínez, Blaise Matuidi, Andrés Reyes, Leandro González Pirez, Nicolás, Julián Carranza, Jorge Mas, ” Mas, Chris Henderson Organizations: CNN, Inter Miami, Argentine, Inter, Major League Soccer, MLS, LA Galaxy, Messi, Philadelphia Union, AEK Athens, Mexican, Chivas, ” Inter, Soccer, Sporting, “ Inter Miami Locations: Argentine, Mexican, Instagram, Barcelona, America’s

☆ As Nigeria scraps fuel subsidy, a vibrant black market collapses
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Desire Danga Essigue | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Since Nigeria scrapped a state fuel subsidy on May 31, black market fuel vendors and commercial drivers in Cameroon, Benin and Togo who were heavily reliant on petrol smuggled from Nigeria have seen their businesses collapse. With supplies dwindling, queues have been forming at official petrol stations, where fuel is now competitively priced. "Supply has become scarce and customers think we're ripping them off with this high price, yet it's from Nigeria that prices have soared," said Perevet Dieudonne, a black market seller. The trade in black market fuel is so central to the local economy that authorities either turn a blind eye or are complicit. At Hilacondji, a border crossing between Togo and Benin, some black market fuel stalls were shut, while at others vendors waited among rows of empty plastic jerricans for potential deliveries.

Persons: Danga, turvy, Perevet Dieudonne, Ousmanou Mal Djoulde, Ayi Hilla, Alice Lawson, Pulcherie, Amindeh Blaise Atabong, Elisha Bala, MacDonald Dzirutwe, Estelle Shirbon, Bate Felix, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: REUTERS, CFA, Reuters, Dangote Petroleum, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Garoua, Cameroon, GAROUA, West, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Nigerian, West Africa, Dangote, Hilacondji, Africa, Cotonou, Pulcherie Adjoha

☆ Titan of Cameroon's opposition politics John Fru Ndi dies at 81
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Amindeh Blaise Atabong | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"It is with sadness that we announce the transition into eternal glory of John Fru Ndi on June 12, 2023, at 11:30 p.m.," it said. "I salute the memory of a singular, charismatic and courageous leader," said current opposition leader Maurice Kamto. An English-speaking businessman from Cameroon's northwest region, Fru Ndi formed the SDF, the first opposition party in the bilingual Central African country, which is dominated by its French-speaking majority. Fru Ndi claimed the vote had been rigged and he was placed under house arrest as riots swept opposition strongholds. As Biya's grip on power tightened, Fru Ndi secured fewer votes, according to official figures.

Persons: John Fru Ndi, Paul Biya, Fru Ndi, Moussa Faki, Maurice Kamto, Ndi, Cameroon's, Akere Muna, Akintunde, Cabral Libii, Biya, Amindeh Blaise Atabong, Nellie Peyton, Anait, Edward McAllister, Conor Humphries Organizations: Social Democratic Front, Union's, Central, REUTERS, Cameroon People's Democratic, Thomson Locations: YAOUNDE, Central, Cameroon's, Central African, Cameroon, Yaounde, CAMEROON, U.S

☆ Former tennis pro helps children shine on court in Cameroon
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Amindeh Blaise Atabong | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Now she wakes up at 5 a.m. every day to start a round of workouts, practice sessions, and school classes alongside nine other girls and 22 boys boarding at the Oyebog Tennis Academy in the town of Souza. She caught the eye of former national champion Joseph Oyebog when she was in tears after losing a practice match, aged just eight. Since graduating from the academy, some beneficiaries have won scholarships for further training abroad, while more than 20 academy trainees have International Tennis Federation rankings. He won national tournaments and competed in the Davis Cup international men's team competition. It offers tennis training at little or no cost.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at a press conference at the American Police Hall of Fame & Museum in Titusville. The group has raised more than $225 million for DeSantis and currently boasts nearly $86 million in cash on hand. Friends of Ron DeSantis could soon try to transfer a moneybag roughly 800 times the size of Donalds'. The state committee, Friends of Ron DeSantis, appears to be positioning itself for the transfer. Friends of Ron DeSantis is allowed to accept unlimited contributions from donors, and it shows.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at a press conference at the American Police Hall of Fame & Museum in Titusville, May 1, 2023. Ron DeSantis, accusing the Republican leader of doubling down on his "retribution campaign" against the company by signing legislation to void Disney's development deals in Orlando. Disney's amended lawsuit also noted that Florida's Republican-led legislature passed legislation last week targeting Walt Disney World's monorail system. On Friday, the final day of the state's 2023 legislative session, DeSantis signed a bill that included language effectively targeting Disney's development contracts. Linda Stewart, a Democrat representing Florida's 13th Senate district and a staunch critic of DeSantis' actions against Disney, called the feud between DeSantis and Disney "insane" and laid blame with her Republican counterparts.

☆ Chad recalls envoy to Cameroon as dispute over Exxon's asset sale escalates
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Exxon closed the sale of its operations in Chad and Cameroon to Africa-focused oil and gas producer Savannah in a $407 million deal in December. Chad has nationalized the assets on its side of the border, including Exxon's share of the over 1,000 km (621 miles) Chad-Cameroon oil pipeline. Savannah Energy has said it will pursue its legal rights over Chad's decision to nationalize Exxon's assets it had acquired. The company said on Wednesday that it had sold a 10% stake of the share capital of the Cameroon Oil Transportation Company which owns and operates the 903km Cameroon section of the Chad-Cameroon pipeline to Cameroon national oil company (SNH). Chad said in its statement that it was not informed of this sale which was contrary to the status of the pipeline company.

☆ Disney and DeSantis have been in a yearlong feud that began after the company spoke out against a controversial bill. Here's a timeline of the events.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Lloyd Lee | Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

After a yearlong feud, Disney sued DeSantis on Wednesday, alleging that the Florida governor tried to "weaponize government power" over the company. The state Board of Education voted on Wednesday to expand that law to cover grades four to 12. Under the leadership of Governor DeSantis, our state has seen record growth in jobs, GDP, and net domestic in-migration. It was the first time the board met since the revelation of the agreement between the prior district board members and Disney. On April 19, the state board approved a ban on classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity for all grades, including grades four through 12.

☆ Disney and DeSantis have been in a year-long feud that began after the company spoke out against a controversial bill. Here's a timeline of the events.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

The feud began after the entertainment giant spoke out last March against a controversial piece of legislation critics have called the Don't Say Gay bill. The state Board of Education voted on Wednesday to expand that law to cover grades 4 to 12. The new district board also is considering more inspection regulations, building workforce affordable housing on land that borders the resort and theme park, and selling the district-owned utilities. It was the first time the board met since the revelation of the agreement between the prior district board members and Disney. On April 19, the state board approved a ban on classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity for all grades, including grades 4-12.

☆ GOP lawmaker leading Florida legislature's effort to rein in Disney was a company stock-holder until the DeSantis feud
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

One key ally, Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, previously held Disney stock but said he sold on principle. Ron DeSantis claw back control of Walt Disney World's special tax district was once a Walt Disney Company investor, annual disclosures show. Ingoglia told Insider that he manages his stocks himself, and that they were long-term holds with a retirement or brokerage account. The financial ties to Disney underscore the company's largess and influence in Florida, where it's the state's biggest attraction. Disney CEO Bob Iger told Time he would be willing to sit down with DeSantis over the feud.

☆ Disney tells its lobbyists to step up fight against DeSantis and his allies in Florida
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Stickers and apparel promoting Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sit on a table before a book tour event at the North Charleston Coliseum on April 19, 2023 in North Charleston, South Carolina. Disney is preparing to take its fight with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his GOP allies in the state legislature to the next level, according to people familiar with the matter. Republican Florida state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia warned Disney not to fight back, as he stood next to DeSantis at a news conference Monday. At the same event, DeSantis vowed to nullify an agreement that would allow the Orlando amusement park to circumvent a special governing district board filled with DeSantis appointees.

☆ The Florida legislature swoops in to try to help DeSantis wrestle power back from Disney World
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The GOP-controlled legislature introduced an amendment to take away Disney's control over its land. Ron DeSantis seize back control of the board that oversees Walt Disney World's special tax district. The amendment aims to nullify Disney's actions from February, in which the mega-corporation stealthily rendered toothless a board DeSantis appointed to make decisions about its land. At that time, DeSantis said, the group would also work separately to void the Disney loophole that stripped them of their power. Unlike rival parks Universal Studios and Sea World, Disney doesn't have to run their plans by zoning commissions or building-inspection departments.

☆ Ron DeSantis and the Florida GOP want to make it harder for public-sector unions to collect dues — with exceptions for police and firemen
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Ethan Dodd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Florida senate passed a bill that would make it harder for public sector unions to collect dues and recertify. While it will impact Democratic-leaning teachers' unions, along with most other public-sector unions, Republican-supporting police and firefighters' unions will be exempt. By making it harder for public employees to pay their union dues, the law makes it harder for teachers' unions to reach the new 60% threshold and recertify. "The governor's staff apparently called around to see the membership of public unions, specifically teachers," Spar said. Of the 100 local teachers unions Spar represents, 70-75 of those locals would need to hold an election to recertify, he said.

'LET THE PROCESS PROCEED'Shortly after the news of his indictment broke, Trump appealed to supporters to provide money for a legal defense. As news of Trump's indictment flashed across a news ticker on a Times Square skyscraper on Thursday evening, New York City resident Elizabeth Blaise welcomed the news. Trump lawyer Susan Necheles confirmed the Tuesday surrender date and said she did not expect charges to be unsealed until that day. "Do you really think that they're going to take President Trump out of the running for president because of some old horse-face story? The Manhattan District Attorney's office successfully prosecuted Trump's business on tax-fraud charges last year, leading to a $1.61 million criminal penalty.

Separately, in a televised interview on Wednesday, Erdogan downplayed the significance of the meeting with Simsek, saying such meetings were ordinary. A senior government official told Reuters the AKP was somewhat divided with some members opposed to Simsek's return, and described the outcome of the Erdogan meeting as "undesirable". The party may now need to revise its economic platform ahead of the election campaign, he added. The AKP declined to comment on whether it was revising its economic strategy ahead of the vote. Two recent polls by MAK and Turkiye Raporu show the opposition presidential challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu between 4 and 9 percentage points ahead of Erdogan.

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