World News
Who could be Ireland’s next taoiseach?
One day on from Leo Varadkar’s resignation as taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael, support is mounting for Simon Harris, education minister, to be his successor.
Nominations for a new leader opened at 10:00 local time on Thursday and will close on Monday at 13:00. If there is a contest the winner will be announced on 5 April.
Simon Harris garnered the support of at least 15 senators, MEPs and TDs by Thursday morning – well above the six he needed (10% of the parliamentary party).
Mr Varadkar pledged his unequivocal support to his successor during a Fine Gael parliamentary party meeting on Wednesday night.
The Irish prime minister said he would remain as a TD, but he hoped his replacement at the top of the Irish government would take up office shortly after the Easter recess.
So who is in the running for Fine Gael’s top job?
Simon Harris
The 37-year-old Minister for Further & Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science was the early favourite with many bookmakers and garnered a healthy roster of backers before nominations even opened.
Fine Gael Minister of State Neale Richmond told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland programme that he would “absolutely be backing” Mr Harris and called him “the best person for the job”.
He would be another young leader, following Leo Varadkar who was appointed taoiseach aged 38.
Mr Harris was the youngest member of the 31st Dáil at the age of 24 and became health minister in 2016.
There he led the department during a change in Ireland’s abortion law and at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic as emergency lockdown measures were introduced.
Analysis
He was the boy wonder who dropped out of college to become a TD – he now stands a real chance of becoming Taoiseach.
Wicklow’s Simon Harris says he was inspired by former Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny to get involved in politics.
Harris was distressed by the lack of services for his younger autistic brother when Kenny told him that joining politics was the only way to make real change.
A go-getter, he went for it.
He went on to nominate Kenny for Taoiseach at the age of 24 in his maiden speech in 2011.
The one-time baby of the house has had a meteoric rise. His career highpoint was overseeing the Repeal the Eighth referendum and subsequent abortion legislation as minister for health.
He grew in popularity during his tenure during the first half of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Post 2020, some suspected his “demotion” to Minister for Higher Education was due to how ambitious he had become and perhaps Leo Varadkar sensed a threat.
Mr Harris was one of the first Irish politicians to embrace TikTok with some now dubbing him the first “TikTok taoiseach”.
It’s all to play for with nominations open till next week, but in this racing season, Harris is an odds-on favourite.
Paschal Donohoe
Aside from Harris, another figure who could be in the contest for the leadership role is Paschal Donohoe – the current Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.
The 49-year-old Dubliner is a former finance and transport minister.
He has also been president of the Eurogroup since 2020.
The informal body brings together ministers from the eurozone area to discuss issues relating to the currency.
Heather Humphreys
Heather Humphreys has served in various cabinet positions since 2014 and is currently the Minister for Rural and Community Development as well as Minister for Social Protection.
Born in the village of Drum, County Monaghan, in 1963, Ms Humphreys is Protestant and before politics was manager of a credit union.
Speaking ahead of the Easter Rising commemorations in 2016 she said, “Given my background as a Protestant and an Ulsterwoman who is a proud Irish republican, I appreciate the need to respect the differing traditions on this island.”
If she became taoiseach she would be the first Protestant to hold the post.
Helen McEntee
Helen McEntee was also on the prospective list for taoiseach.
However she has said that she will not stand for the leadership of Fine Gael.
She told LMFM Radio on Thursday morning that it was “not the right time” for her.
Ms McEntee also said that she will not rule out running for the leadership role again in the future, and that she wanted to see a contest for the next leader.
The 37-year-old Navan native has been a TD since 2013 and is currently the justice minister.
She became a TD at the age of 26, succeeding her father after he took his own life.
Last year she survived a motion of no confidence following the Dublin riots in November, while there has also been a heated debate about hate speech legislation.
World News
Newsom urges Oakland officials to tighten ‘extreme’ policy that restricts police chases
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, called on Oakland officials Friday to amend an “extreme” policy that generally only allows police to chase suspected criminals in cases of “violent forcible crimes.”
The governor sent a letter to Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, the Oakland City Council and the Oakland Police Commission urging them to reconsider the Oakland Police Department (OPD) policy that limits officers’ ability to pursue suspects.
“Although some California jurisdictions allow vehicle pursuits for only certain crimes (e.g., felonies), Oakland is an outlier by imposing exceptional restrictions on OPD’s ability to police criminal activity, generally permitting pursuits only for ‘violent forcible crimes,’ as defined in OPD’s policy, and crimes involving firearms,” Newsom wrote.
The letter said that, unlike most other jurisdictions in the state, local police in Oakland are prohibited from pursuing people suspected of committing various felonies and any misdemeanor, including those that are violent, as well as other offenses that endanger public safety, such as reckless driving, sideshow activity and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
GOV NEWSOM ORDERS HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS TORN DOWN ACROSS CALIFORNIA: ‘NO MORE EXCUSES’
“I am mindful of the sensitivities around vehicle pursuits, which can be dangerous to police, suspects, and innocent bystanders,” the governor wrote. “California’s Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training recognizes and addresses this in its standard-setting guidance. But there is also extreme danger to the public in allowing criminals to act with impunity, and the reckless driving associated with sideshows and other criminal acts is a significant threat to public safety — as witnessed regularly by the public in viral videos and news coverage.”
This comes after Newsom’s recent move to increase California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Oakland to conduct surge operations targeting organized crime, sideshows, carjackings and other criminal activity.
Newsom said the move quickly produced several arrests of suspects accused of committing these crimes. Two days after the governor’s announcement, the CHP used ground and airborne assets to conduct a surge operation targeting sideshows. Several vehicle pursuits through that operation led to five felony arrests, eight DUIs, the recovery of eight stolen vehicles and the seizure of two guns.
“In the course of the CHP’s operations, however, they have observed, based on their professional law enforcement experience and expertise, certain dynamics that are contributing to Oakland’s public safety challenges,” Newsom wrote in the letter. “In particular, the CHP has brought to my attention that they observed criminals often fleeing with impunity because it’s common knowledge that the Oakland Police Department’s (‘OPD’) pursuit policy allows vehicle pursuits in only very limited circumstances.”
Newsom said CHP observed suspects attempting to avoid arrest by using the same routes, meaning that the suspects knew where OPD would stop chasing them. But, the governor said, the suspects were unable to avoid the six pursuits initiated by CHP, which had a number of resources available to them, including air support.
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“Any policy on vehicle pursuits must be clear-eyed in balancing the risks and benefits involved,” Newsom’s letter read. “Because of Oakland’s public safety challenges and the degree to which OPD’s pursuit policy is an outlier among California law enforcement agencies, I support the recent action by the City Council to direct a review of this policy.
“I urge you to reconsider whether OPD should be permitted to pursue suspects in more circumstances to improve public safety in your city and to establish a process to evaluate whether OPD is making full use of its authority, including that granted under the existing pursuit policy, to protect public safety and enforce the law,” he continued.
Newsom concluded his letter by saying he is committed to improving public safety in Oakland and across California. He said there have been some recent improvements in public safety, but that officials “owe it to our communities to continue to search for solutions.”
World News
Wordle Answer for Today, July 27, 2024
If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for July 27, 2024 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is easier; I got it in three. Beware, there are spoilers below for July 27, Wordle #1,134! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.
How to play Wordle
Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.
Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)
Ready for the hints? Let’s go!
Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?
We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)
Three of today’s letters are from our mnemonic. One is fairly common, one is less common.
Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?
A morning beverage.
Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?
There are no repeated letters today.
How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?
There are three vowels.
What letter does today’s Wordle start with?
Today’s word starts with J.
What letter does today’s Wordle end with?
Today’s word ends with E.
What is the solution to today’s Wordle?
Ready? Today’s word is JUICE.
How I solved today’s Wordle
I started with RAISE followed by NOTCH to eliminate as many common consonants as possible. The only solution left was JUICE.
Wordle 1,134 3/6 ⬛⬛🟩⬛🟩 ⬛⬛⬛🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
Yesterday’s Wordle answer
Yesterday’s Wordle was harder. The hint was “covered or flooded with, such as tourists in Paris during the Olympics” and the answer contained four common letters and one uncommon letters.
The answer to yesterday’s Wordle was AWASH.
A primer on Wordle basics
The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word.
Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)
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Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)
-
Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)
With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.
The best starter words for Wordle
What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:
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CRANE
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TRACE
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SLANT
-
CRATE
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CARTE
Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:
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SALET
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REAST
-
TRACE
-
CRATE
-
SLATE
Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.
How to win at Wordle
We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.
The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.
One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.
Wordle alternatives
If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:
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Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.
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Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.
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Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.
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Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.
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Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.
World News
France travel disruption expected to last for days
French rail company SNCF has warned that disruption from Friday’s sabotage against the country’s train network could last until the end of the weekend and affect hundreds of thousands more passengers.
Coordinated arson attacks on three lines of the high-speed TGV network on Friday caused chaos for travellers, hours before the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics. A fourth attack was thwarted by rail workers.
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal described the attacks as “acts of sabotage”.
About a quarter of international Eurostar trains were also cancelled, with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer among those affected.
In a statement issued on Friday evening, SNCF said traffic “would improve” on affected lines on Saturday thanks to the work of thousands of rail workers.
It said:
- On the eastern line, trains would run normally from 06:00 (05:00 BST) on Saturday
- On the northern line, 80% of trains would be running, with delays of 1-2 hours
- On the south-western line, 60% of trains would be running, with delays of 1-2 hours
The company added that customers whose trains are delayed or cancelled will be contacted by email or text message.
Eurostar said it expected about a fifth of services over the weekend would be cancelled, while all trains would face delays of around 1.5 hours. Eurostar services use the northern high-speed line.
SNCF said surveillance of the rail network had been strengthened “on land and in the air,” using 1,000 workers and 50 drones.
Junior Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete said around 250,000 people had been affected on Friday, while up to 800,000 could face delays and cancellations by Monday.
He added that disrupting holiday travel, rather than Friday’s Olympic opening ceremony, was the most likely aim of the saboteurs.
“There is not necessarily a link” with the Olympics, he said in an interview.
Friday 26 July traditionally marks the start of the grand départ (big getaway) for many French holidaymakers heading out of the cities.
No group has yet claimed that it was behind the attacks. A source linked to the investigation told the AFP news agency that the operation was “well prepared” and organised by “a single structure”.
Mr Attal said security forces were searching for those responsible.
At around 04:00 on Friday, saboteurs cut and set on fire specialised fibre optic cables essential for the safe functioning of the rail network, government officials said.
One site was at Courtalain, 150km (93 miles) south-west of Paris. A picture posted online purportedly showed burnt-out cables in a shallow gulley with its protective SNCF paving stones discarded.
The SNCF spoke of a “massive, large-scale attack aimed at paralysing” its services, not just at Courtalain but at Pagny-sur-Moselle, a village outside the eastern city of Metz and Croisilles, not far from the northern city of Arras.
Another attempted attack in Vergigny, south-east of Paris, was foiled by SNCF workers who were carrying out maintenance on site in the early hours of Friday.
Prosecutors have opened an investigation into attacks on “the fundamental interests of the nation”.
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