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California restaurant’s comeback shows how outdated, false Asian stereotype of dog-eating persists

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — David Rasavong’s cultural pride is evident all throughout his restaurant.It’s on the wall of family portraits and where a stunning mural depicts his family’s journey from Laos to California. It’s on the menu filled with Lao and Thai dishes like the crispy coconut rice salad of Nam Khao and the stir-fried rice noodles of Pad See Ew.And it’s in the fact that Love & Thai in Fresno, California, restaurant is open at all. A baseless accusation grounded in a racist stereotype about Asian food using dog meat brought a six-month barrage of harassment so heated that Rasavong, 41, closed down its previous location over fears for his family’s safety.His earlier restaurant had itself only been open for seven months when a so-called animal welfare crusader in May implied on social media that a pitbull tied up at an unconnected home next door was going to be served on the menu.A day after the initial commentary, vitriolic statements, voicemails and calls rained down. Ras...

Bombings hit event for Iran’s Gen. Qassem Soleimani, a shadowy figure slain in 2020 US drone strike

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — For Iranians backing the country’s theocracy, whose icons since the Islamic Revolution have been stern-faced clergymen, Gen. Qassem Soleimani represented a popular figure of national resilience in the face of four decades of U.S. pressure.For the U.S. and Israel, he was a shadowy figure in command of Iran’s proxy forces, responsible for fighters in Syria backing President Bashar Assad and for the deaths of American troops in Iraq. Solemani survived the horror of Iran’s long war in the 1980s with Iraq to take control of the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, responsible for the Islamic Republic’s campaigns abroad. Relatively unknown in Iran until the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, Soleimani’s popularity and mystique grew after American officials called for his killing. A decade and a half later, Soleimani had become Iran’s most recognizable battlefield commander, ignoring calls to enter politics but growing as powerful, if not more, than ...

San Pedro family targeted with racial slur painted on their car

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

A San Pedro family remains shaken after waking up to find their car vandalized with a racial slur and Swastikas.“I couldn’t believe this happened to me in San Pedro,” said Reginald Scott, the victim.Scott said his red Ford Mustang was vandalized sometime between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.The suspect used black spray paint to leave a large message across one side of the car saying, “Merry Christmas” followed by the N-word. The other side was also painted across with indiscernible lettering. Swastikas were painted onto the bumper and the vehicle’s tires were slashed. Scott believes the vandalism may be in retaliation for parking in front of someone’s house. A San Pedro family remains shaken after they woke up to find their car was vandalized with a racial slur and a Swastika during the holidays. (KTLA)A San Pedro family remains shaken after they woke up to find their car was vandalized with a racial slur and a Swastika during the holidays. (KTLA)A San Pedro famil...

Tarzana shop owner doused with bear spray during attempted robbery

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

Surveillance video captured an attempted robbery at a shop in Tarzana last month that had already been broken into just five weeks earlier.  The incident at Optical Universe happened on the morning of Dec. 30.  Three suspects are seen in the footage as they approach the shop unaware that someone, the store’s owner Slava Samsanovich, was inside.  "With the side of my eye, I saw a lot of movement through the window,” Samsanovich told KTLA’s Carlos Saucedo. “I turn around and see three big guys covered in big hoodies, masks, everything, gloves.”  The owner of Optical Universe decided he was not going to go down without a fight.  “I grabbed my pepper spray, and I started screaming at them. I started going at them,” he recalled. “As I approached them, one of the guys turns around and takes out a can this big and it was bear spray. He sprayed me from about five feet, right into my eyes and into my face.” The three men fled the store without any merchandise, but by...

Prep roundup: Green’s clutch three-pointer gives O’Dowd boys dramatic victory

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

Boys basketballBishop O’Dowd 63, Alameda 62Josh Green, running unhindered by the ball but conscious of the seconds dwindling down, found himself open on the right wing with under 30 seconds left. The Bishop O’Dowd sharpshooter stopped, jumped, and let a three-pointer go.  In front of a packed Alameda gymnasium split between visiting O’Dowd supporters and Hornets fans who could taste the team’s first league win, Green watched the ball begin and then complete its journey into the bottom of the net. O’Dowd (7-5) took the one-point lead with 23.8 seconds left thanks to Green’s clutch shot, and then held onto the victory. “We lost our first game in the league last year, so we wanted to come in and get the win this time,” said Green, who scored 15. “I wanted to come up big for my teammates.”Alameda (7-5) entered the matchup with momentum, having won the bronze division at the Classic at Damien in La Verne. Meanwhile, O’Dowd, happy to be back in the East Bay, had gone 2-2 at the Holiday Cl...

One dead in Wednesday Vallejo shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

(KRON) -- One person was killed in a shooting in Vallejo on Wednesday morning, the city's police department said. The Vallejo Fire Department was called to the 700 block of Ohio Street at 10:36 a.m. Wednesday for an unconscious man. VFD attempted to provide aid, but the man was pronounced dead, police said. The police department and Solano County Coroner came to the scene and determined that the victim had at least one gunshot wound. Police are investigating the shooting and the circumstances surrounding it. Anyone with information is asked to call (707) 648-4278 or (707) 648-4533.

Kings outlast short-handed Magic in double overtime behind triple-double from Domantas Sabonis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Domantas Sabonis had his seventh triple-double of the season, Malik Monk scored 37 points off the bench and the Sacramento Kings outlasted the Orlando Magic 138-135 in double overtime Wednesday night.Sabonis finished with 22 points, 23 rebounds and 12 assists as Sacramento overcame a hot shooting night by the short-handed Magic, who made 25 3-pointers to break the franchise record. That helped them come back from a 13-point deficit in the third quarter to take a lead in the fourth. Paolo Banchero had a career-high 43 points to lead the Magic but missed a potential tying 3 as the final buzzer sounded. Jalen Suggs scored 24.De’Aaron Fox made two field goals in the second overtime, including a jumper that put the Kings ahead 137-135 with under a minute to play after the teams had furiously traded baskets. In overtime, Sabonis gave the Kings a 126-125 lead with 17.1 seconds left on a dunk off a pass by Monk, who had nine assists in 46 minutes. Monk then made on...

Iran says at least 84 were killed in blasts at a ceremony honoring slain general

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two bombs exploded and killed at least 84 people at a commemoration for a prominent Iranian general slain by the U.S. in a 2020 drone strike, Iranian officials said, as the Middle East remains on edge over Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.No one immediately claimed responsibility for what appeared to be the deadliest militant attack to target Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution. Iran’s leaders vowed to punish those responsible for the blasts, which wounded at least 284 people.The explosions struck minutes apart on Wednesday, shaking the city of Kerman, about 820 kilometers (510 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran. The second blast sprayed shrapnel into a screaming crowd fleeing the first explosion.An earlier death toll of 103 was twice revised lower after officials realized that some names had been repeated on a list of victims and due to the severity of wounds suffered by some of the dead, health authorities said. Many of the wou...

Devils pull away to beat Capitals 6-3 for 4th win in 5 games

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nico Hischier, Dawson Mercer and Michael McLeod each scored two goals, and the New Jersey Devils beat the Washington Capitals 6-3 Wednesday night.Hischier also had an assist as the New Jersey captain put together a three-point performance on the eve of his 25th birthday. Mercer’s big night came as he played his 200th consecutive game to begin his NHL career.Nico Daws made 23 saves to pick up his second victory in two appearances since being called up last month and the Devils rebounded from surrendering a two-goal lead to win for the fourth time in five games.Evgeny Kuznetsov had a goal and an assist, and Connor McMichael and John Carlson also scored for the Capitals. Hunter Shepard allowed six goals on 26 shots in starting the second half of a back to back after Washington won at Pittsburgh on Tuesday night. Alex Ovechkin extended his point streak to three games with two assists.MAPLE LEAFS 2, DUCKS 1, OTANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Auston Matthews scored 2:12 into over...

LeDee scores 21 as San Diego State rolls past Fresno State 74-47

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:15 GMT

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jaedon LeDee scored 21 points and San Diego State cruised to a 74-47 victory over Fresno State in a Mountain West Conference opener on Wednesday night.LeDee made 9 of 12 shots and 3 of 4 free throws for the Aztecs (12-2), who have won five in a row. Micah Parrish and Lamont Butler both scored 11 with Parrish adding seven rebounds and Butler four assists.Xavier DuSell led the Bulldogs (7-7) with 10 points.___Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here___AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketballSource