Houston — Floodwaters stopped some Texas schools on Monday after days of severe rainfall hit the Houston area, resulting in hundreds of rescues, including individuals stranded on rooftops.

According to authorities, a 5-year-old boy died after traveling in a car that was swept away by swift floods.

Although forecasts expected storms to subside in southeastern Texas, high water continued restricting several roadways, leaving homeowners with lengthy cleanups in neighborhoods where rising river levels prompted weekend evacuation orders.

Heavy Rains Ease Around Houston But Flooding Remains After Hundreds Of Rescues And Evacuations

Houston is one of the most flood-prone metropolitan areas in the country. Hurricane Harvey poured historic rainfall in 2017, flooding thousands of houses and requiring more than 60,000 rescues.

In one rainy region of Houston, Channelview school officials postponed classes after a survey of their employees revealed that many of them had experienced conditions that prevented them from coming to work.

“These folks have suffered much, people,” Trinity County Sheriff Woody Wallace said during a Facebook video Sunday as he paddled a boat through a rural flooded area. Cars and street signs were partially submerged, peeking above the water around him.

National Weather Service meteorologist Jimmy Fowler reported that areas surrounding Lake Livingston, northeast of Houston, received up to 23 inches (58 cm) of rain over the past week.

Heavy Rains Ease Around Houston But Flooding Remains After Hundreds Of Rescues And Evacuations

A 5-year-old kid died in Johnson County, south of Fort Worth, after being carried away after the vehicle he was riding in became caught in swift-moving water near the community of Lillian just before 2 a.m. Sunday, according to officials.

The child and two adults were trying to get to dry land when they were washed away. The adults were rescued and sent to a hospital about 5 a.m., while the infant was discovered dead in the water around 7:20 a.m., according to Johnson County Emergency Management Director Jamie Moore on social media.

According to National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Stalley, storms dumped 9 inches (23 cm) of rain over six to eight hours in areas from central Texas to the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Since last week, storms have necessitated multiple high-water rescues in the Houston region, including some from flooded home rooftops.

Greg Moss, 68, stayed in his recreational RV on Sunday after leaving his home in Channelview, east Harris County, near the San Jacinto River. The day before, he had packed up much of his stuff and departed before the road leading to his house flooded.

Heavy Rains Ease Around Houston But Flooding Remains After Hundreds Of Rescues And Evacuations

“I would be stuck for four days,” Moss remarked. “So now at least I can go get something to eat.”

Moss relocated his things and vehicle to a neighbor’s home, where he intended to remain until the waters receded. He said Sunday that the floodwaters had already receded by a couple of feet, and Moss was not concerned about his home flooding because it is on higher ground.

SOURCE – (AP)

The Cinco de Mayo parade that was scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Chicago has been canceled for safety reasons. The long-running event was scheduled to start near Damen and Cermak at noon in the Little Village neighborhood.

According to FOX 32 the Chicago Police Department, the decision to cancel the event was made by the 10th District, local officials and parade organizers due to gang violence in the area.  Police said multiple arrests were made, including gun arrests.

Many Americans commemorate Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican festival honoring their 1862 victory over France in the Battle of Puebla. Today is September 16, not Mexico’s Independence Day, as many Americans believe.

Why the U.S. celebrates Cinco de Mayo and its beginnings

In the US, Cinco de Mayo celebrates Mexican-American culture rather than history. Major celebrations take place in Mexican-populated cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, and Houston. Fun includes parades, celebrations, mariachi music, Mexican folk dancing, and traditional dishes and drinks.

Cinco de Mayo celebrates-what? Starting with 1862 battle. Mexican Independence Day (Día de la Independencia) commemorates the country’s independence from Spain on September 16, 1810..

After 50 years, Napoleon III intended to claim Mexico on Cinco de Mayo.

French troops evicted Mexico’s President Benito Juárez and government from Veracruz.At dawn on May 5, 1862, 2,000 Mexican soldiers met 6,000 French troops in Puebla, east-central Mexico.Juárez declared May 5 a national holiday after Mexico declared victory by evening.y.

The battle affected the American Civil War. After the French left North America, the Confederacy couldn’t use them as allies to win.

Despite Cinco de Mayo celebrations in Mexico, especially in Puebla, they pale in comparison to Día de la Independencia, according to García.d.

De Mayo is now a Mexican American holiday

Cinco de Mayo began as a late-19th-century resistance to the Mexican-American War. The Chicano Movement of the 1960s and 1970s popularized the festival.

“It becomes a Chicano holiday, in many ways, linked to the Chicano movement, because we discover Mexicans resisting a foreign invader,” he said.They link Chicano struggle to Cinco de Mayo.”

businesses began commercializing Cinco de Mayo in the 1980s, especially beer businesses and restaurants offering deals and cocktails. García calls it “Corona Day” in jest.”

On Cinco de Mayo, García hopes everyone enjoys Coronas, but with a history lesson to complement..

U.S. events

San Diego: Old Town San Diego will host events May 4 and 5. Live music, folklorico, eating, and drink specials.

To celebrate Cinco de Mayo, Denver hosts a community parade and a taco eating contest on May 4. Denver Civic Center Park will host 10 a.m.–8 p.m. events May 4-5.

St. Paul, Minnesota: One of Minnesota’s major Latino festivals, St. Paul’s West Side de Mayo fiesta. This year’s parade, car, bike, and dog shows will begin at 10 a.m. on May 4.

San Antonio, Texas: From May 4-5, the Historic Market Square will host de Mayo celebrations with live music, Folklorico dancers, Mariachi, food vendors, and more.

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Just a few months shy of a quarter-century as Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, will sign a copy of the constitution on Tuesday, ushering in another six-year term as president with unparalleled powers.

Since becoming acting president on December 31, 1999, Putin has shaped Russia into a monolith, crushing political opposition, expelling independent journalists, and promoting an increasing adherence to prudish “traditional values” that push many in society to the margins.

His authority is so strong that other leaders could only stand on the sidelines while Putin began a war in Ukraine, despite predictions that the invasion would bring worldwide condemnation and harsh economic penalties, as well as cost Russia dearly in the blood of its men.

With that amount of control, it is difficult to predict what Putin will accomplish during his next term, both at home and abroad.

As Putin Begins Another 6-Year Term, He Is Entering A New Era Of Extraordinary Power In Russia

The war in Ukraine, in which Russia is making gradual but continuous battlefield advances, is the primary issue, and he shows no signs of reversing direction.

“The war in Ukraine is crucial to his current political ambition, and I see no reason to believe that will change. “And that affects everything else,” Brian Taylor, a Syracuse University professor and author of “The Code of Putinism,” told The Associated Press.

“It affects who’s in what positions, it affects what resources are available and it affects the economy, affects the level of repression internally,” he said.

In his February State of the Union address, Putin vowed to carry out Moscow’s objectives in Ukraine and do everything necessary to “defend our sovereignty and the security of our citizens.” He stated that the Russian military has “gained a huge combat experience” and is “firmly holding the initiative and waging offensives in several sectors.”

That will come at a high cost, potentially depleting funds for the massive domestic projects and changes in education, welfare, and poverty alleviation that Putin detailed in his two-hour presentation.

Taylor believed such initiatives were included in the address primarily for show rather than to indicate a genuine commitment to implement them.

Putin “thinks of himself in the broad historical terms of Russian territory, putting Ukraine back to where it belongs, and things like that. And I believe them outweigh any more socioeconomic-type programs,” Taylor added.

Suppose the battle does not result in absolute loss for either side, with Russia maintaining some of the territory it has already conquered. In that case, European governments fear Putin will be tempted to engage in additional military adventurism in the Baltics or Poland.

As Putin Begins Another 6-Year Term, He Is Entering A New Era Of Extraordinary Power In Russia

“It’s possible that Putin does have vast ambitions and will try to follow up on a costly success in Ukraine with a new attack somewhere else,” Harvard international relations expert Stephen Walt wrote in Foreign Policy. “But it is also entirely possible that his ambitions do not extend beyond what Russia has won — at enormous cost and that he has no need or desire to gamble for more.”

However, he said, “Russia will be in no shape to launch new wars of aggression when the war in Ukraine is finally over.”

Others argue that such a sensible worry may not prevail. According to Maksim Samorukov of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, “Moscow is likely to make self-defeating mistakes driven by Putin’s whims and delusions.”

In a Foreign Affairs column, Samorukov stated that Putin’s age may influence his judgment.

“At 71, his awareness of his death undoubtedly influences his decision-making. A rising awareness of his short time influenced his catastrophic choice to attack Ukraine.

Overall, Putin may be entering his new term with less influence than he appears to have.

Russia’s “vulnerabilities are concealed in plain sight. “Now more than ever, the Kremlin makes decisions in a personalized and arbitrary manner, with no basic controls,” Samorukov stated.

“The Russian political elite have grown more pliant in implementing Putin’s orders and more obsequious about his paranoid worldview,” he stated in the letter. The country’s leadership “is at permanent risk of crumbling overnight, as its Soviet predecessor did three decades ago.”

Putin is certain to maintain his hostility against the West, which, he stated in his State of the Nation speech, “would like to do to Russia the same thing they did in many other regions of the world, including Ukraine: to bring discord into our home, to weaken it from within.”

Putin’s hostility against the West stems not only from its backing for Ukraine but also from what he perceives as the erosion of Russia’s moral compass.

Russia banned the fictitious LGBTQ+ “movement” last year, labeling it extreme in what officials claimed was a fight for traditional values such as those promoted by the Russian Orthodox Church against Western influence. Courts also prohibited gender transformation.

“I would expect the role of the Russian Orthodox Church to continue to be quite visible,” Taylor said. He also mentioned the social media anger that erupted during a party held by TV presenter Anastasia Ivleeva, in which guests were urged to arrive “almost naked.”

As Putin Begins Another 6-Year Term, He Is Entering A New Era Of Extraordinary Power In Russia

“Other actors in the system understand that that stuff resonates with Putin. … There were people interested in exploiting things like that,” he went on to say.

Although the opposition and independent media have nearly evaporated as a result of Putin’s repressive actions, there is still room for future movements to dominate Russia’s information space, such as continuing efforts to construct a “sovereign internet.”

The inauguration takes place two days before Victory Day, Russia’s most important secular festival honoring the Soviet Red Army’s seizure of Berlin in World War II and the war’s terrible difficulties, which cost the USSR around 20 million people.

The defeat of Nazi Germany is important to modern Russia’s character, as is Putin’s justification of the war in Ukraine as an analogous conflict.

SOURCE – (AP)