Comment on Afghanistan supports sending more US forces

MALMO, Sweden — Swiss singer Nemo won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night with “The Code,” an operatic ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing their nongender identity. Nemo beat Croatia’s Baby Lasagna to the title by winning the most points from a combination of national juries and viewers around the world. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The victory in the Swedish city of Malmo followed a turbulent year for the pan-continental pop contest that saw large street protests against the participation of Israel that tipped the feelgood musical celebration into a chaotic pressure cooker overshadowed by the war in Gaza. Hours before the final, Dutch competitor Joost Klein was expelled from the contest over a backstage altercation that was being investigated by police. The 68th Eurovision Song Contest finally got down to musical business Saturday in the Swedish city of Malmo after days of protests and offstage drama that have tipped the feelgood musical celebration into a chaotic pressure cooker overshadowed by the war in Gaza. A raucous Croatian rocker, a nonbinary Swiss performer with a soaring voice and — contentiously — a young Israeli singer with a powerful ballad were among acts from 25 countries vying for the continent’s musical crown. Before the final, thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through Malmo to oppose the participation of Israel.

Coloradans looking to buy homes or simply hold onto their property face a barrage of challenges: a white-hot real estate market, high interest rates and soaring property taxes. You can add surging home insurance rates to the pile of problems eroding the landscape of affordable housing options. Colorado homeowners are reporting premium increases ranging from roughly 30% to more than 130% in just the past few years.

For much of his adult life, Patrick Rizzo was a professional runner who chased the dream of running the marathon at the Olympics. He competed in the U. S. Olympic Marathon Trials four times and finished in the top 10 of numerous U. S. championship races. There was another reason he ran, though. “Life takes you through what I would call the rolling hills of life,” said Rizzo, who retired from professional running in 2020.

Aurora police are searching for a missing teenager with a mental disability last seen Friday morning. Cortez , was last seen at 6:30 a.m. Friday in the 12000 block of East Amherst Circle, according to the Aurora Police Department. Police did not release Cortez’s last name because he is a minor. The teenager is 15 years old, but functions on the level of a 10-year-old, police said Saturday. Cortez was last seen on surveillance footage wearing a red hoodie with a white triangle design, black pants with a white belt and a gray backpack, police said. Police are asking anyone who has information on Cortez or his whereabouts to call 911 or the Aurora Police Department at 303-627-3100. UPDATE: This is the actual outfit Cortez was wearing when he went missing. Please look out for him in this red hoodie.

Historically, when students at American universities and colleges protest — from the Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter — there’s a common refrain that “outside agitators” are to blame. College administrators and elected officials have often pointed to community members joining protests to dismiss the demands of student protesters. Experts say it’s a convenient way for officials to delegitimize the motivations of some political movements and justify calling in law enforcement to stop direct actions that are largely nonviolent and engaging in constitutionally protected speech. “This tactic shifts focus away from genuine grievances and portray radical movements as orchestrated by opportunistic outsiders,” said Shanelle Matthews, a professor of anthropology and interdisciplinary studies at the City University of New York and a former communications director for the Movement for Black Lives. Over the last few weeks, students on campuses across the country have built encampments, occupied buildings and led protests to call on colleges and universities to divest their endowments from companies profiting from the Israel-Hamas war.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran’s hard-liners won most of the remaining seats in an election run-off to give them full control over the country’s parliament, authorities said Saturday, while not sharing any details on the turnout. The result, and that of the previous vote in March, gives hard-liners 233 of the 290 seats in Iran’s parliament, according to an Associated Press tally. Hard-liners seek more cultural and social restrictions based on Islamic sharia, including demanding that women wear the Islamic veil in public.