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As witchcraft becomes a multibillion-dollar business, practitioners’ connection to the natural world is changing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Helen A. Berger, Brandeis University via Associated PressWitches, Wiccans and other contemporary Pagans see divinity in trees, streams, plants and animals. Most Pagans view the Earth as the Goddess, with a body that humans must care for, and from which they gain emotional, spiritual and physical sustenance.Paganism is an umbrella term that includes religions that view their practices as returning to those of pre-Christian societies, in which they believe the Goddess was worshipped along with the gods and the land was seen as sacred. Wicca focuses specifically on the practice of the British Isles.Witchcraft has also become a multibillion-dollar business. As a sociologist who has been researching this religion for more than 30 years, I have witnessed this growing commercialization: Witch kits are sold by large companies and in stores – something unheard of when I began my research in 1986.This surge in popularity has changed these communities in some subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Gro...

Kidnapped woman found alive in Wheat Ridge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

A 43-year-old woman was found alive in Wheat Ridge Wednesday morning after a forcible kidnapping Tuesday evening, authorities said.The Aurora resident has been transported to a hospital, Arapahoe County Sheriff officials said in a posting on Twitter. Her condition was not released.Jefferson County Sheriff SWAT officers have arrested Lance Foster as a suspect in connection to the kidnapping. He is suspected of stalking the woman and kidnapping her around 5:47 p.m. Tuesday, authorities said. A Colorado Bureau of Investigation bulletin said Foster, 43, is suspected of forcing Meise into a black 2008 Lincoln vehicle.#UPDATE Jessica Meise has been found alive in Wheat Ridge. She has been transported to a local hospital. Her condition is unknown at this time. The suspect, Lance Foster, was arrested by @jeffcosheriffco SWAT. He is in police custody. Follow for more updates. https://t.co/qrmNsTOTRc— Arapahoe Sheriff (@ArapahoeSO) July 26, 2023

Denver author’s latest novel is the simple but powerful tale of a Yellowstone park ranger

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Ren Hopper is a Yellowstone National Park enforcement ranger whose view of humans is just a little bit jaded. When a mother and father encourage their daughter to feed an apple to a gangly moose calf, Ren risks his life to save the child from the animal’s wrathful mother, then all but wishes the moose would turn on the parents. “What the hell has gotten into you?” Ren asks himself during a similar reverie. “Do you think you’re the last ranger that puts the animals first?”“That was the anger that frightened him. In his world lately, the life of a wolf, or a hawk, might be worth more than the life of a man,” writes Heller.Whatever his opinion of humans, Ren is overwhelmed with his love for the outdoors — the wilderness with its abundance of wildlife, the solitude. The author of “The Last Ranger” is Denver’s Peter Heller, so you know the book is filled with lyrical descriptions of Yellowstone. And fishing. Always fishing. Heller’s faith in fishing is almost Biblical. “He caught f...

Denver weather: Hot with temps to reach 95 degrees, possible afternoon thunderstorms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Metro Denver residents face blue skies and sunshine Wednesday as summer heat bakes Colorado, with possible afternoon thunderstorms bringing rain, according to the National Weather Service.The high temperature in Denver will be 95 degrees, decreasing to 64 degrees at night, weather service forecasters said. On Thursday, the high is expected to be 94 degrees.Scattered thunderstorms likely will form over Colorado’s western mountains and the Front Range high plains Wednesday afternoon and evening. These may kick out winds at speeds up to 55 miles per hour and hail. Any rain will be brief, forecasters said, and storms will diminish gradually in the evening.Meteorologists estimated the likelihood of rain on Wednesday at 40%. They’re anticipating a shift into a summer rain pattern next week that could lead to heavier precipitation and elevated risks of flash flooding, especially where fires in mountain forests left burn scars.In southern Colorado, forecasters warned of potentia...

Car flies off 10 Freeway into homeless encampment, injuring 5

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Five people were injured when a car went over a freeway embankment and crashed into a homeless encampment in the Palms neighborhood Wednesday morning. The crash was reported around 2:20 a.m. on the westbound side of the 10 Freeway near Palms Boulevard.There was no immediate word on what may have caused the vehicle, a Tesla, to go over the embankment. Los Angeles Fire Department officials confirmed that there were a total of five patients. First responders were called after a car crashed into a homeless encampment on July 26, 2023. (KeyNews.TV)Three people were extricated from the vehicle and transported in "at least" serious condition. Two other patients were taken to the hospital in fair condition. The crash remains under investigation.

Michael Jackson sexual abuse lawsuits may be revived

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

A California appeals court on Wednesday will consider reviving the dismissed lawsuits of two men who allege Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children for years, a move the court appears likely to make after a tentative decision that would order the cases back to a lower court for trial.The suits were filed after Jackson's 2009 death by Wade Robson in 2013 and James Safechuck the following year. The two men became more widely known for telling their stories in the 2019 HBO documentary, “ Leaving Neverland.”In this Feb. 28, 1984, file photo, Michael Jackson, left, holds eight awards as he poses with Quincy Jones at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Doug Pizac, File)Both sued MJJ Productions Inc. and MJJ Ventures Inc., two corporations for which Jackson was the sole owner and lone shareholder.In 2021, Superior Court Judge Mark A. Young ruled that the two corporations and their employees had no legal duty to protect Robson and Safechuck from Jackson and threw out the su...

Purchasing CBD Preroll Joints — Is Smoking Hemp Cigarettes Legal?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Rolling and lighting joints is a central aspect of cannabis culture. Since joints are so closely associated with marijuana, many US customers assume they’re always illegal under federal law. However, with the rise in the CBD market, there’s a new legal breed of joints known as “hemp prerolls.”Unlike high-inducing marijuana joints, CBD prerolls are readily accessible in every state with flexible hemp policies. Many CBD customers have already fallen in love with the unique flavors and effects these new “CBD joints” offer.Is It Legal To Use CBD Preroll Joints?As long as manufacturers abide by the 2018 US Farm Bill, hemp joints and cigarettes are legal in the USA. The crucial feature all legal CBD joints share is a delta-9 THC percentage below 0.3 percent. Companies need to verify their CBD products contain ≤ 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis to legally sell in the USA.Although most states accept the ≤ 0.3 percent THC standard, a few territories a...

Mojave Grey Build Their House in the Sun

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

Mojave Grey Build Their House in the Sun: The men of innovative electro-pop duo Mojave Grey have both been producing and peforming for a decade.“Our musical DNA is grounded in more of a rock, singer-songwriter foundation,” they say. “When we mixed that foundation with electronic music, Mojave Grey was born. I would say at the top of this year things started getting really serious.”Today, they simply describe their sound as “dance music.”“Music that captures the experience of living and creating in Joshua Tree,” they say. “We are both multi-instrumentalists so that helps us blend organic sounds with more polished synth-heavy beats. Somewhere between Rufus du Sol, Depeche Mode, and U2.”The artists say that electronic music feels more relevant than ever right now.“We are so excited to see these hybrid acts, similar to us, popping up,” they say. “Monolink, Night Tales, Rufus…Ones that aren’t only on the decks,...

San Francisco homicide: Man stabbed in Mission District

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

A man was fatally stabbed in San Francisco’s Mission District, and a suspect was arrested, police said.The attack was reported at 3:50 a.m. Sunday, July 23, near 24th and Mission streets. Officers found two men suffering from what were apparently stab wounds.Both were taken to a hospital, and one, a 42-year-old man, was pronounced dead there.Investigators located a suspect, a 25-year-old man, in Daly City. He was booked at San Francisco County Jail on suspicion of homicide and assault and battery. Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Attorney for ex-UC Davis student charged in stabbing deaths says he’s not mentally fit for trial Crime and Public Safety | California man convicted of killing his lover’s husband Crime and Public Safety | Brentwood woman arrested after husband found stabbed to death Crime and Public Safety | Former Northern California minister charged with murder in 1975 slaying of 8-year-old girl ...

Saratoga’s economy bounces back from pandemic, but major budget deficit still looms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:47 GMT

The City of Saratoga’s local economy bounced back from the pandemic last fiscal year, but a potential budget deficit could still be growing.Staff said Saratoga’s revenue sources were nearly 8% higher than anticipated for fiscal year 2022-23, and its expenditures came in 2% under budget. Higher than expected revenue from property taxes along with a boost in charges for services caused the increase.“Overall, the fiscal year ended on a positive note, and we expect that to continue,” said administrative services director Nick Pegueros at the July 19 council meeting.Sales and hotel tax revenues saw a 4.9% increase, bringing in an additional $120,000, and charges for services like construction fees brought in 37.6% more revenue than budgeted, or $1.05 million.“Saratoga has experienced an extremely robust recovery from the impacts of the pandemic, and 2022-23 has the highest sales tax collections in the past 15 years and likely longer,” according to the staff report.Property taxes, the cit...