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ph365 website SEC Chair to Step Down Upon Trump Administration’s ReturnThe Seattle Seahawks have only one path to the playoffs: winning the NFC West. Seattle finds itself heading into a must-win game against the host Bears on Thursday night, and even if the Seahawks can top Chicago and beat the Los Angeles Rams in Week 18, they still might miss out on the postseason because of the strength-of-victory tiebreaker. If Seattle (8-7) was to get past Los Angeles for a 10-7 finish, the teams would split their season series 1-1, have matching 4-4 records against common opponents and would hold the same in-conference record, leaving strength of victory to determine the fate of the Seahawks and Rams. And that fifth tiebreaker belongs to Los Angeles. "We just got to handle our part, which is win out," Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV said. "Then, let the chips fall where they fall. Hopefully, we catch a little luck and we can get in there." Seattle dropped out of wild-card contention after a 27-24 loss to the Vikings on Sunday. Minnesota was down 24-20 with less than 4 1/2 minutes to go, but Sam Darnold threw a go-ahead 39-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson with 3:51 remaining. Jason Myers came up short on a 60-yard field-goal attempt with 1:55 left, preventing the Seahawks from drawing even. "We got to win two, but it starts with one," said Seattle quarterback Geno Smith, who had 314 passing yards, three touchdowns and two picks against Minnesota. "We got a tough Chicago team on the road. I know their record isn't the greatest, but if you watch film on those guys, they got a tough team ask with a lot of the talent. "We got to be ready coming off a short week, traveling on Christmas. Guys got to get their minds right and get ready to go." The Seahawks will need to rely on Zach Charbonnet in the backfield after placing fellow running back Kenneth Walker III (ankle) on injured reserve ahead of Thursday's game. In a corresponding move, the team signed rookie running back George Holani from the practice squad to the 53-man active roster. Walker returned from a two-game absence due to an ailing calf on Sunday before injuring his ankle versus the Vikings. He leads the Seahawks in carries (153) and rushing yards (573) to go along with seven rushing touchdowns. Charbonnet, in turn, has a team-best eight rushing touchdowns to go along with 106 carries for 453 yards. The Seahawks also ruled out tight end Brady Russell (foot) and safety K'Von Wallace (ankle). The Bears (4-11) have dropped nine consecutive games, most recently losing 34-17 to the Detroit Lions. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams continued to shine, passing for 334 yards and two TDs. "Every snap is valuable," Williams said. "There are so many different situations that happen throughout games that you can learn from and that I've learned from this year." Williams has been building a strong rapport with wide receiver Rome Odunze, a fellow first-round pick in this year's draft. The two hooked up four times for 77 yards against Detroit. "From the moment you step on the field with a great player like him, you feel that confidence and I think that you feed off of that from one another and I think that we do that well," Odunze said of his relationship with Williams. "But you've got to go out there and prove it on the field and we have to continue to do that." The Bears will be without defensive backs Elijah Hicks (ankle/foot) and Tarvarius Moore (knee), running back Travis Homer (hamstring) and offensive lineman Teven Jenkins (calf) for Thursday's game. --Field Level Media

Warning of 'alarming rise' in online ticket scams after fraudsters target UK fansSpoilers ahead for the plot and ending of Gladiator II. Does it qualify as a spoiler to report that Gladiator II ends with the flash and clang of steel? Of course not. Director Ridley Scott , like any emperor worth his weight in golden breastplates, knows that the crowd wants blood. And at the end of the belated sequel to his own Y2K sword-and-sandals phenomenon, he obliges with a climactic mano a mano between good and bad, respectively represented by Lucius (Paul Mescal), the bastard son of the original film’s hero, and the scheming Macrinus (Denzel Washington), a former slave turned power broker. By the calculus of marquee appeal, this final face-off makes sense: What could be more rousing, in theory, than Mescal versus Denzel — than pitting a rising star against one of Hollywood’s most bankable veterans? But in execution, there’s something curiously anticlimactic about the moment when Lucius and Macrinus conclusively cross blades, each flanked by an army. Their fight is satisfying neither as spectacle nor dramatic payoff. It just kind of ... happens , and then the movie ends, though not before unwisely reminding viewers of how its predecessor came together in its closing minutes. Few would accuse the original Gladiator of anticlimax. That movie had a simpler and much more irresistible structure — a kind of heightened sports-movie arc that followed Russell Crowe’s single-mindedly vengeful general turned slave Maximus as he rose to prominence in the Colosseum, rising through the ranks like a boxer chasing the heavyweight title. Every fight increased his sway as a symbol of populist dissent in Rome, while bringing him closer to his destiny to face Joaquin Phoenix’s treacherous, conniving Commodus in the arena. By the climax, the viewer was as starved for catharsis as Maximus himself. The whole movie had inexorably built to his knock-down, drag-out tussle against the man who killed his family. Gladiator II gives Mescal’s Lucius, estranged from Rome and his mother, a similar motivation. He’s also the “husband to a murdered wife,” determined to claim revenge against the Roman general, Marcus Acacius (Pedro Pascal), who led the army against his adopted people and claimed the life of his soldier spouse. Macrinus, who purchases Lucius after he’s conscripted into gladiatorial bondage in the aftermath of defeat, promises to help his new slave achieve vengeance if he keeps winning in the arena. For a while, Gladiator II seems poised to replicate the trajectory of the first film, but with the intriguing wrinkle that the target of our hero’s fury is plenty noble himself. Pascal’s character turns out to be a decent man plotting to unseat the cruel, ineffectual emperors, complicating our sympathies in a potentially interesting way. He’s also the loving husband of Lucius’s mother, Lucilla (a returning Connie Nielsen). Like her, the audience might find its allegiances divided. Call it the Fugitive effect. But the script by David Scarpa oddly resolves this promising conflict well before the end credits. Lucius and Marcus do square off in the Colosseum, but their fight is brief, and it ends with the two realizing that they’re essentially on the same side, moments before the emperors do what Lucius won’t and condemn Marcus to a bloody, pitiless death. Are these two giggling, sadistic despots — a double dose of Commodus, by the more-is-more arithmetic of sequels — the real villains of Gladiator II ? No, the film reserves that title for Washington’s Machiavellian Macrinus, who wants to destroy Rome from within, and who ends up leading the Roman army against a mutinous cavalry assembled by the executed Marcus and eventually rallied by Lucius. All of this is much more convoluted than the way Gladiator steadily drew Maximus and Commodus together, their final battle taking on the inevitability of fate. It’s not just that Macrinus, for all of Washington’s wicked scenery chewing (the sense that he’s actually having fun , unlike any of his co-stars), isn’t as memorable or hissable an adversary as Commodus. The real problem is that his relationship with Lucius never evolves beyond an uneasy alliance of convenience, and so when they find themselves on opposite sides of the battlefield, their duel lacks anything resembling a personal stake. In the end, we’re just watching two political positions duke it out: our hero’s suddenly idealistic belief in the principles of Rome versus the villain’s cynical embrace of anarchy. To put it mildly, that’s not nearly as exciting as Commodus reaping what he sowed. There’s little sense, as in Gladiator , that the movie has been building to this matchup all along. It doesn’t help that the fight itself passes in a hasty, indifferently choreographed blur. It’s over as soon as it begins, Macrinus sinking into shallow water just in time for Lucius to deliver a supposedly inspirational speech on the importance of the republic without a single line as stirring as Maximus’s simple, parting, “There was a dream that was Rome, it shall be realized.” Mescal is a fine, sensitive actor, but he’s out of his depth trying to fill Crowe’s shoes. It’s difficult to buy him as either a commanding military leader or a mythic action hero, a force of rage personified. Mostly, these final minutes feel like a microcosm for the whole underwhelming film. They underscore how much Gladiator II fails to replicate the power of Gladiator , even as it sweatily bombards us with new attractions — sharks! baboons! warships! — like a Vegas fight promoter leaning way too hard on his undercard. Of course, the movie knows very well that it’s operating in the shadow of its iconic predecessor; like a lot of so-called legacy sequels, it turns that subtext into text, in this case via the story of a son trying to live up to the memory of his famous father. But no comparison between the endings of these two movies would do the new one any favors. It’s in its final scene that Gladiator II really betrays the insecurity of its design, as Lucius makes like his dad once did and scoops up a handful of dirt — a visual callback that Scott chases with actual footage from the ending of Gladiator , set to the same elegiac Hans Zimmer ballad, “Now We Are Free,” that he cued up at the end of his earlier film. It’s truly a Hail Mary: a late, blatant attempt to trigger our nostalgic emotions. But the grandeur of the original’s ending has slipped away, like sand between fingers.

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Is New Year’s Eve all hype or the best party ever? Lewiston residents weigh in.Israeli troops stormed one of the last hospitals operating in northern Gaza on Friday, igniting fires and forcing many staff and patients outside to strip in winter weather, the territory’s health ministry said. Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit multiple times over the past three months by Israeli troops waging an offensive against Hamas fighters in surrounding neighborhoods, according to staff. The ministry said a strike on the hospital a day earlier killed five medical staff. Israel’s military said it was conducting operations against Hamas infrastructure and militants in the area of the hospital, without details. It repeated claims that Hamas fighters operate inside Kamal Adwan but provided no evidence. Hospital officials have denied that. The Health Ministry said troops forced medical personnel and patients to assemble in the yard and remove their clothes. Some were led to an unknown location, while some patients were sent to the nearby Indonesian Hospital, which was knocked out of operation after an Israel raid this week. Israeli troops during raids frequently carry out mass detentions, stripping men to their underwear for questioning in what the military says is a security measure as they search for Hamas fighters. The Associated Press doesn’t have access to Kamal Adwan, but armed plainclothes members of the Hamas-led police forces — tasked with keeping security and officially separate from the group’s armed wing — have been seen in other hospitals. The Health Ministry said Israeli troops also set fires in several parts of Kamal Adwan, including the lab and surgery department. It said 25 patients and 60 health workers remained in the hospital out of 75 patients and 180 staff who had been there. The account could not be independently confirmed, and attempts to reach hospital staff were unsuccessful. “Fire is ablaze everywhere in the hospital,” an unidentified member of the staff said in an audio message posted on the social media accounts of hospital director Hossam Abu Safiya. The staffer said some evacuated patients had been unhooked from oxygen. “There are currently patients who could die at any moment,” she said. A largely isolated north Since October, Israel’s offensive has virtually sealed off the northern Gaza areas of Jabaliya, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya and leveled large parts of them. Tens of thousands of Palestinians were forced out but thousands are believed to remain in the area, where Kamal Adwan and two other hospitals are located. Troops raided Kamal Adwan in October, and on Tuesday troops stormed and evacuated the Indonesian Hospital. The area has been cut off from food and other aid for months , raising fears of famine. The U.N. says Israeli troops allowed just four humanitarian deliveries to the area from Dec. 1 to Dec. 23. The Israeli rights group Physicians for Human Rights-Israel this week petitioned Israel’s High Court of Justice seeking a halt to military attacks on Kamal Adwan. It warned that forcibly evacuating the hospital would “abandon thousands of residents in northern Gaza.” Before the latest deaths Thursday, the group documented five other staffers killed by Israeli fire since October. Israel launched its campaign in Gaza vowing to destroy Hamas after the group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people and abducted some 250 others. Around 100 Israelis remain captive in Gaza, around a third believed to be dead. Israel’s nearly 15-month-old campaign of bombardment and offensives has devastated the territory’s health sector. A year ago, it carried out raids on hospitals in northern Gaza, including Kamal Adwan, Indonesian and al-Awda Hospital, saying they served as bases for Hamas, though it presented little evidence. Israel’s campaign has killed more than 45,400 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, and wounded more than 108,000 others, according to the Health Ministry. Its count does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Deaths from the cold in Gaza More than 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians have been driven from their homes, most of them now sheltering in sprawling, squalid tent camps in south and central Gaza. Children and adults, many barefoot, huddled Friday on the cold sand in tents whose plastic and cloth sheets whipped in the wind. Overnight temperatures can dip into the 40s Fahrenheit (below 10 Celsius), and sea spray from the Mediterranean can dampen tents just steps away. “I swear to God, their mother and I cover ourselves with one blanket and we cover (their five children) with three blankets that we got from neighbors. Sea waters drowned everything that was ours,” said Muhammad al-Sous, displaced from Beit Lahiya in the north. The children collect plastic bottles to make fires, and pile under the blankets when their only set of clothes is washed and dried in the wind. At least three babies in Gaza have died from exposure to cold in recent days, doctors there have said. Khaled and Keath reported from Cairo. Wafaa Shurafa, Fatma Khaled And Lee Keath, The Associated Press

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Scott Turner, the choice to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development , is a former NFL player who had a role in President-elect Donald Trump first administration. Turner, 52, who was named executive director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council in 2019, is the first Black person selected to be a member of the Republican’s new cabinet. A native of the Dallas suburb, Richardson, Turner graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He was a defensive back and spent nine seasons in the NFL beginning in 1995, playing for the San Diego Chargers, the former Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos. Turner should be familiar to San Diego County’s rural voters as a former aide to a long-time congressman. During off-seasons, he worked as an intern for then-Rep. Duncan L. Hunter, whose district seat was Alpine. After Turner retired in 2004, he worked full time in the office. In 2006, Turner ran unsuccessfully as a Republican in the crowded special election for California’s 50th Congressional District , finishing ninth in the race to replace disgraced Rep. Randy Cunningham. Turner eventually enjoyed political success in his home state, where he joined the Texas House in 2013 as part of a crop of tea party-supported lawmakers. He tried unsuccessfully to become speaker before he finished his second term in 2016. He did not seek a third term. Turner worked for a software company in a position called “chief inspiration officer” and said he acted as a professional mentor and pastor and counselor for employees and the executive team. He also has been a motivational speaker. He and his wife, Robin Turner, founded a nonprofit promoting initiatives to improve childhood literacy. His church, Prestonwood Baptist Church in Texas, lists him as an associate pastor. He is also chair of the center for education opportunity at the America First Policy Institute , a think tank set up by former Trump administration staffers to lay the groundwork if he won a second term. We have launched our year-end campaign. Our goal: Raise $50,000 by Dec. 31. Help us get there. Times of San Diego is devoted to producing timely, comprehensive news about San Diego County. Your donation helps keep our work free-to-read, funds reporters who cover local issues and allows us to write stories that hold public officials accountable. Join the growing list of donors investing in our community's long-term future. In April 2019, Trump introduced Turner as the head of the new Opportunity and Revitalization Council. Trump credited Turner with “helping to lead an unprecedented effort that transformed our country’s most distressed communities.” The mission of the council was to coordinate with various federal agencies to attract investment to so-called “Opportunity Zones,” economically depressed areas eligible for federal tax incentives. HUD is responsible for addressing the nation’s housing needs. The agency oversees fair housing laws and housing for the poorest Americans, sheltering more than 4.3 million low-income families through public housing, rental subsidy and voucher programs. The agency, with a budget of tens of billions of dollars, runs a multitude of programs that do everything from reducing homelessness to promoting homeownership. It also funds the construction of affordable housing and provides vouchers that assist low-income families in paying for private housing. During the campaign, Trump focused mostly on the prices of housing, not public housing. He railed against high costs and said he could make housing more affordable by cracking down on illegal immigration and reducing inflation. He also said he would work to reduce regulations on home construction and make some federal land available for residential construction. Get Our Free Daily Email Newsletter Get the latest local and California news from Times of San Diego delivered to your inbox at 8 a.m. daily. Sign up for our free email newsletter and be fully informed of the most important developments.The Los Angeles Chargers activated running back J.K. Dobbins from injured reserve on Friday. Dobbins is formally listed as questionable but figures to be the team's top running threat for Saturday's road game against the New England Patriots. Teammate Gus Edwards (ankle) was ruled out Thursday. Dobbins has missed the past four games since sustaining a knee injury against the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 25. He was a full practice participant Thursday before receiving the questionable label. The injury-prone Dobbins was enjoying a solid season prior to the knee ailment, with 766 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground and 28 receptions for 134 yards in 11 games. His career high for rushing yardage is 805 for the Ravens in 2020. Dobbins' return comes with the Chargers (9-6) just one win from clinching an AFC wild-card playoff spot. Los Angeles also elevated safeties Eddie Jackson and Kendall Williamson from the practice squad. --Field Level MediaLPGA major champion Sophia Popov makes debut as on-course reporter at CME

McNealy and Whaley share lead at wide open RSM Classic, Canada's Hughes tied for third