Daily Archives: April 24, 2020


Steve Dalkowski, Inspiration for ‘Bull Durham’ Character, Dies at 80

Steve Dalkowski, a hard-throwing, wild left-hander whose minor league career inspired the creation of Nuke LaLoosh in the movie “Bull Durham,” has died. He was 80.He died Sunday at the Hospital of Central Connecticut in New Britain. His sister, Patricia Cain, said Friday that he had several pre-existing conditions that were complicated when he became infected with the new coronavirus. Dalkowski had been in assisted living for 26 years because of alcoholic dementia.Dalkowski never reached the major leagues but was said to have pitched much faster than 100 mph. Long …


Pandemic Brings Gloom to Muslims Marking Month of Ramadan

Millions of Muslims in Asia on Friday started the holiest month on the Islamic calendar under the coronavirus lockdown or strict social restrictions, deepening their anxiety over the disease. For many, Ramadan is a time to get closer to God, family and community, but the pandemic has upended those traditions. Many face unemployment, travel plans to visit relatives have been canceled and places where they usually break the daytime fast with families such as malls, parks and mosques are locked. “This is too sad to be remembered in history,” said …


WHO Announces Broad Collaborative Effort to Tackle COVID-19

The World Health Organization (WHO) Friday announced a collaborative effort with world leaders and private industry to ensure equitable distribution of any viable vaccines or treatments for COVID-19.WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus joined U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres via teleconference from Geneva, along with European Union leaders, to announce the project that is aimed at ensuring all countries get the latest tools to fight the coronavirus pandemic.  Calling it “the fight of our lives,” Guterres said treatments and vaccines for the virus should belong to the whole world, not …


Trump’s Suggestion to Use Disinfectants for COVID-19 Alarms Experts

U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion that disinfectants could be used to treat coronavirus patients is triggering alarm among health experts, and warnings from a maker of the sanitizing solutions.Trump said at his regular White House coronavirus media briefing Thursday that scientists should investigate inserting disinfectants into patients’ bodies to cure COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.”I see the disinfectant that knocks it out in a minute, one minute,” Trump said. “And is there a way we can do something like that by injection, inside, or almost a cleaning?”With coronavirus …


My Synagogue is Closed

In Israel, all synagogues have been closed for more than a month because of the coronavirus. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA on her synagogue in Jerusalem.   …


NASA Marks 30 Years Anniversary of Hubble Telescope Launch

Friday marks 30 years since the groundbreaking Hubble Telescope, the first optical telescope to be put into space, was sent into orbit.The Hubble rocketed into orbit aboard space shuttle Discovery April 24, 1990 and was later deployed by the shuttle’s crew members.  The telescope, named for American astronomer Edwin Hubble, was created because astronomers at the U.S. space agency NASA wanted an observatory free of the Earth’s atmosphere and human-generated light.  But the initial excitement about Hubble quickly turned to disappointment when it was discovered the telescope’s primary mirror had …


Supreme Court Rules Against Trump’s EPA in Clean Water Case

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Trump administration on Thursday, saying industry cannot avoid the Clean Water Act when it pumps wastewater into the ground instead of directly into oceans and rivers.In a 6-3 decision, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote for the majority. He said putting the polluted water into the ground before it eventually reaches oceans and rivers is “the functional equivalent” of directly releasing it into the ocean, and permission from the Environmental Protection Agency is needed.In his dissenting opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that according to current …


Army Corps Suspends Blanket Permit for Utility Projects Amid Environmental Concerns

After last week’s court ruling brought to light potential environmental concerns, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers suspended a nationwide program meant to approve utility work, despite industry representatives’ warnings it could stop important infrastructure projects.Nationwide Permit 12, a blanket permit used by utility companies to build gas and oil pipelines, powerlines and other infrastructure across wetlands and streams, was ruled illegal by U.S. District Judge Brian Morris concerning the Keystone XL pipeline’s use of the permit for water crossings without the Army Corps’ proper consideration of endangered wildlife.From there, …