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In post-bubble Japan, fine-art museums are an endangered species. That’s because their fate is often inextricably bound to the companies and millionaires who founded them. Accountants have always advised wealthy Japanese businessmen to build small museums as tax shelters. (With their nonprofit status, museums can help families avoid massive inheritance taxes on pricey art.) Companies were also thought to benefit from museums and in-house galleries, which could help raise their profile and grant them a veneer of sophistication....

It went roughly as follows: The Democrats are running against George Bush and the Iraq war. To the extent that they succeed, it will largely be because of the president’s low job-approval numbers—which are at rock bottom mostly because voters can’t see that he is leading us in a new and “different kind of war, an insurgent war” against Islamic fascists. The last president to lead us “for the first time in a different kind of war” was President Harry Truman....

The Founders worried about these questions, and so, of course, does Al Gore. I ran into him the other day in a place where I see lots of concerned citizens: outside the MSNBC television studios near Capitol Hill. To answer an urgent question first, Gore didn’t look bad. He’s not the svelte Al Gore of old, and why should he be? He’s pushing 60, a grandfather three times over, a best-selling author, accidental movie star and media mini-mogul....

Governments have introduced harsh penalties for those breaking imposed isolation. The virus is far deadlier for elderly people or those with pre-existing health conditions, so officials are seeking to deter anyone from breaking isolation and spreading COVID-19. This will slow the increase in infections, known as “flattening the curve,” offering respite for national health systems. National lockdowns are becoming the norm, with large gatherings banned, non-essential shops, bars, and restaurants closed, and school children sent home....

On Thursday, the Finnish government announced that it would close its border to Russian tourists beginning at midnight local time and that it would remain shut “until further notice.” “The decision in principle aims to completely prevent Russian tourism to Finland and the related transit through Finland,” Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said during a news conference. Haavisto justified the long-discussed move by saying that the continued arrival of Russian tourists is endangering Finland’s international relations....

Balor appeared on the show to confront reigning NXT Champion Adam Cole and confirmed that he is back on the NXT brand, where he began his WWE career five years ago. Balor, a former NXT Champion, graduated to WWE’s flagship Raw brand in 2016 and quickly became the first-ever Universal Champion. “As of now, Finn Balor is NXT,” Balor said, crashing Cole’s victory lap after he successfully defended the NXT Championship against Matt Riddle....

MORE: WWE SummerSlam results | Big Cass on ‘surreal’ call-up to WWE main roster In a story on WWE.com , ringside physician Dr. Chris Robinson stated that Balor “dislocated his shoulder and was able to put it back in himself in a split second” and that an MRI showed a possible labrum tear. Here is a video of how he suffered the injury: It’s tough news for Balor after finally getting called up from NXT and was being positioned as one of the lead figures on “Raw” as the inaugural Universal champion....

Local fire crews responded to reports of a fire in southwest Atlanta, at a building at the 2000 block of Fairburn Road SW. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire, and no injuries were reported, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. Investigators told the news outlet that the backside of the building was damaged in the attack. A firebomb is a bomb that causes a fire instead of exploding. A motive behind the attack isn’t yet clear....

The alleged incident was reported by the Stentorians of Los Angeles City in a letter addressed to the Board of Fire Commissioners and city officials in Los Angeles, the paper reported. The Stentorians, a group that said on its website it represents more than 300 Black firefighters and paramedics in the area, alleged within the letter that the firefighter rubbed a piece of paper notifying him of the city’s vaccine requirement against his buttocks and let the paper fall to the ground....

The new truck joins a growing lineup of Ram Build to Serve Editions. For more than 2 years running, the company has rolled out five special edition trucks, one for each branch of the U.S. Military. The Firefighter Edition is the first installment of the current phase, with trucks honoring police officers and emergency medical service providers to follow. “After honoring each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces with our initial ‘Built to Serve’ models, we felt it would be equally important to also extend our gratitude to all first responders who serve or have served our communities,” Ram CEO Mike Koval said in a press release....

Firmino was pulled over by police in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of Christmas Eve. The 25-year-old is set to appear in court on January 31. A spokesperson for Merseyside Police told the Liverpool Echo: “Merseyside Police has charged a 25-year-old man with drink driving after his car was stopped in Liverpool city centre in the early hours of Saturday, December 24 2016. “Roberto Firmino, from Liverpool, will appear at Liverpool City Magistrates Court on January 31....

To this I say: Ohio State is no different than the TCU, Boise State and Utah teams of the past. Teams with weak schedules trying to worm their way into the big game. And why? Because they can only play who’s on their schedule. MORE: The 10 best finishes | Bowl projections | BCS analysis How many times did we hear that over the years with all of those BCS busters of the past?...

The United States Postal Service aims to have their First-Class mail delivered within one to three days around 95 percent of the time. Data shows that from the week of October 3, several districts in states across the country were way below this target. According to the data, Detroit was the worst performing district out of the 67, delivering just 70.9 percent of First class mail on-time compared to the national average of 86....

The xenotransplantation was performed on September 30, 2021, at UAB Hospital. Today, the first peer-reviewed research was published in the American Journal of Transplantation. Xenotransplantation refers to tissues or organs being transplanted between different species. More than 800,000 Americans are living with kidney failure, according to experts at UAB. Doctors from UAB told Newsweek that the procedure consisted of transplanting two genetically-modified pig kidneys into the abdomen of a brain-dead human patient named Jim Parsons, 57, who was involved in a dirt bike accident....

It’s been thought for some time that wandering black holes, offset from the centers of galaxies or flung away from their neighbors, could exist. The trouble is finding them. But after poring over data from more than 10 years ago, scientists now think that they have done just that. The problem with finding black holes is that it is hard to spot them at the best of times, let alone when they are wandering isolated through space....

The FDA announced Monday that Apretude, ViiV Healthcare’s extended-release injectable preparation of the antiviral drug cabotegravir, had been approved for at-risk adults and adolescents weighting at least 77 pounds. Apretude offers an alternative to oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medications that are already on the market. It is administered with two “initiation injections” given one month apart, followed by a maintenance dose given every two months. “Today’s approval adds an important tool in the effort to end the HIV epidemic by providing the first option to prevent HIV that does not involve taking a daily pill,” Dr....

Belkin is the first manufacturer out of the gate with a charging dock that supports the faster Series 7 charging speeds. The 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe features a MagSafe iPhone charger at the full 15 watts of power, a 5-watt Qi charger meant for AirPods, and an Apple Watch charger with the updated, faster charging. Not even Apple itself yet offers an updated multidevice charger that supports the faster-charging speeds of the Series 7 Apple Watches....

A source told Sporting News that Brady isn’t expected to attend this year’s Kentucky Derby either, which takes place on Saturday, May 5. Brady had become a familiar face on Millionares Row. Even so, his absence from the nation’s most celebrated horse-racing event wouldn’t be as surprising as his decision to skip the opening of New England’s voluntary workout program earlier this month for a family vacation in Qatar....

My mom and dad fell in love with Jerry and his ministry early on. They were youth-group leaders in their Brown City, Mich., church and they took their high-school kids on cross-country tours of Bible colleges with the hopes the teens would attend Christian universities—“Christian” meaning “born-again” evangelical. (In their strictly interpreted book, Catholicism and backsliding Protestantism wouldn’t get you where you needed to go—namely the Promised Land.) So after one such trip they decided to move all five of us kids to the Blue Ridge Mountains so we could be part of Jerry’s growing majority....

The action gets underway at 1:05 p.m. ET in Baltimore with Game 1 of the White Sox-Orioles doubleheader. READ MORE: SN Fantasy | Daily lineup splits | MLB DFS picks SP RANKINGS CALL TO THE ‘PEN A day after allowing three hits, including a go-ahead home run, in a tie game, Tampa’s Brad Boxberger served up a three-run homer on Wednesday, once again in a tied contest. Boxberger had been mostly lights-out this season prior to the previous two games, so it’s unlikely his closer’s job is in jeopardy – especially with Jake McGee serving up a grand slam on Tuesday – but he can’t afford many more big slip-ups....