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Page Fortna: In Gaza conflict, words like ‘terrorism’ and ‘genocide’ are potent weapons. Definitions matter

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

Since the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, language is being used strategically in a contest over legitimacy in ways that blur important distinctions. Much of the heat — and none of the light — comes from a failure to distinguish tactics from goals, leaders and organizations from the people they aim to represent, and attempts to understand or explain from attempts to justify the actions of the other side.The intensity of the battle over legitimacy is not surprising. The conflict evokes existential fears of expulsion and extermination that both sides feel to their core given their histories. And the political outcome of this conflict may be shaped as much by the contest over legitimacy on the world stage as by the unfolding military contest on the ground.A number of important distinctions get lost in the contest over words, however.Arguments about whether Oct. 7 was “terrorism” or “resistance to occupation” evoke the old adage that one personR...

Movie review: Dialogue-free ‘Silent Night’ pummels away without respite

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

The dialogue-free action movie “Silent Night” is a fascinating experiment — but a failed one. As it turns out, modern action movies, though they can be ideal vessels for bombastic image-making, need words to convey humor and humanity, and not even one of our foremost action auteurs, John Woo, can make it work without those two elements.“Silent Night” is Woo’s much heralded return to Hollywood after two decades (his last American film was 2003’s “Paycheck”). The Hong Kong filmmaker behind movies like “Face/Off” and “Mission: Impossible II,” as well as his iconic collaborations with Chow Yun-Fat, “Hard Boiled” and “The Killer,” is the poet laureate of action movies, known for his expressive, evocative and highly influential style.One would think a stylist like Woo could make a dialogue-free project work, but not with the dog of a script he’s been handed by screenwriter Robert Archer Lynn. The story of “Silent Night” is a rabid right-wing “Death Wish”-style revenge fantasy trafficking ...

Morning showers give way to clearing skies: mild afternoon ahead

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- We have a few showers out there, moving eastward across the region. These will exit early this morning and then we'll see some clearing. A mix of clouds and sun for the afternoon, with highs reaching the low 50s. Clouds increased again this evening as another weak system moved back into the area. This will bring a similar setup to last night, with another round of spotty light rain and sprinkles. After early morning showers, we'll dry out for the rest of the day. A gradual decrease in cloud cover and highs in the mid-40s After temperatures in the 40s through Wednesday, we'll jump up into the 60s for Thursday and Friday.

Is Rockies’ Peter Lambert ready to reinforce Colorado’s shaky rotation?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

The reality is this: Unless the Rockies can improve their starting pitching this winter, they face another long, hot, discouraging summer in 2024.General manager Bill Schmidt has already made one significant move, acquiring right-hander Cal Quantrill in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians last month. But there are so many holes to fill, searching for pitching will top the Rockies’ to-do list when Major League Baseball’s winter meetings begin Monday in Nashville.But the team just might have a partial solution already on its roster in 26-year-old right-hander Peter Lambert, who’d become something of a forgotten man until he flashed promise in the second half of the 2023 season.“I thought it was a great year, and it was a win for me — personally,” Lambert said toward the end of the season. “I had a couple of rough years, for sure, and coming into this year there were still a lot of question marks as to whether I could stay healthy and what I could d...

CU women’s basketball has returned to national prominence, but JR Payne and the Buffs still have boxes left to check

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

BOULDER — This year’s CU women’s basketball team isn’t Ceal Berry’s Buffs. They might be better.“This team is identical to the 1994-95 team from my senior year,” said Shelley Sheetz, the former Buffs star who’s in her first season as a CU assistant. “That was an Elite 8 team and the best team that’s ever come through this program with the highest ranking, a No. 1 seed in the tournament, (a program-record) 30 wins and finishing the season No. 2 overall in the nation.“This team has that, and possibly more. I’ve told them, ‘Why not raise a different banner that we don’t have in the rafters?’ We don’t have that Final Four banner yet. This team has the pieces of the puzzle to take this program to the next level.”Over the last three years, the omens pointing to the Buffs’ ascent have become hard to ignore.The Buffs toppled Stanford in overtime in 2021 at the CU Events Center, a triu...

Challenged by Michael Malone, young Nuggets neighbors talked through struggles and bounced back: “We knew that was on us”

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

When the Nuggets finally got home from a dreadful road trip, not everyone was ready to sleep it off.Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther are apartment neighbors. They hang out almost every day, usually congregating at Braun’s place. “It’s an open house,” he said.In this situation, it was open invite. The Nuggets had just landed in Denver after nine days and a 1-4 record on the road. The three neighbors happen to be part of a second unit that had just been called out by coach Michael Malone. After a 105-86 loss to the Rockets, Malone told his team in the locker room that he planned to make changes to bench players’ minutes.Back in Denver, the young players gathered.“We just talked through it,” Braun told The Denver Post. “We knew that was on us. We knew we’ve gotta play better, so we just hung out and talked about it.”“Just keeping each other in the right mental space,” Watson said. “In a positive space.”...

Rockies winter meetings primer: Will Colorado be a wallflower again?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

Major League Baseball’s winter meetings begin Monday in Nashville. The hot stove could sizzle, especially with No. 1 free agent Shohei Ohtani looking for his next team and a huge contract.Will there be a blockbuster trade involving Juan Soto or Pete Alonso? Will the Orioles open their wallets and sign a big-name closer? Will the Diamondbacks build on their surprising run to the World Series?But the Rockies? They tend to be wallflowers at the winter meetings. Perhaps things will be different this year, but don’t expect the Rockies to stoke the hot stove at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center.Here’s a look at the Rockies’ needs and possible moves at the winter meetings and in the coming months:Starting pitching: Colorado made a significant trade last month by acquiring right-hander Cal Quantrill in exchange for minor league catching prospect Kody Huff. Coming off a 103-loss season, general manager Bill Schmidt said the Rockies would be “op...

Avalanche Journal: 20 observations from an up-and-down but ultimately successful first quarter

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

The first quarter of the Colorado Avalanche’s season has felt like a three-act play.Colorado ripped off six wins in a row to begin the season, but players and coach Jared Bednar kept warning everyone that improvements were needed. Then came five losses in seven games, four of which were by four-plus goals.The final act has looked more like what this team expects itself to be. The Avs are 7-1-1 since an embarrassing 8-2 loss at home to St. Louis. In totality, the Avalanche’s start has been a successful one.“Even as a group, our players identified that our details weren’t tight (at 6-0),” Bednar said. “When you go through a little struggle and now you’re not getting results, guys quickly identified that, ‘Hey, we’ve got to be a lot better in a lot of different areas in order to have success.’“Once you start having the failures, then you get guys really digging in to put more importance on the details of the game, eventually that process leads to good results.”Colorad...

Letters: Major Denver overhauls — DIA, 16th Street Mall, library — in a slow race to the finish

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

The renovation race is onJust like those between-innings races featuring dental characters on the scoreboard at Coors Field, the City of Denver has its own race that is well underway. Who will finish first? Remodel at DIA? Remodel at the Denver Central Library? Or the rebuild of the 16th Street Mall? The pace is slow but somebody has to finish first. Place your bets.Ben Eastman, DenverThe crux of our current political climateThe electorate has the luxury of believing as they will, endlessly disagreeing with their neighbor, and voting for the candidates of their choice.But few issues are black and white. None should be used as a litmus test for any candidate because few candidates are all of one persuasion, liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican. We all possess a mixture of those traits at any one time, and those traits change over time and circumstances and issues.Yes, we elect our representatives because we believe they think like we do most of the time on most issues. But...

Winter meetings: A’s seeking low-cost solutions via free agents, trades, draft lottery

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 15:17:49 GMT

Major League Baseball’s upcoming winter meetings in Nashville, where trades and free-agent signings are the main courses on the menu, could help produce the single most important player for the future of the A’s franchise.He will be a player to be named later — their most consequential one ever.When baseball’s executives assemble Monday, don’t expect seismic changes to a downtrodden A’s team coming off a team-record 112 losses. The A’s don’t have any stars left so they probably won’t get a potential difference-maker in a trade any time soon. Owner John Fisher has never spent his money on a meaningful free agent and he won’t start now.This means Tuesday’s MLB Draft Lottery represents the one realistic path for the A’s to acquire a franchise-altering player. At least the odds of earning the No. 1 pick are in their favor – the lone perk for being MLB’s worst team in 2023. They’ll share the best odds of winning the lottery (18.3%) with fellow also-rans Kansas City and Colorado.The...