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The troops will be sent to Poland, Germany and Romania, according to the Associated Press.

The developer is proposing to build Maryland Heights Commerce Center, a business park with 1.4 million square feet of office flex and distribution buildings.

Back in 2015, frustration at John Deere's draconian tractor DRM helped birth a grassroots tech movement dubbed "right to repair." The company's crackdown on "unauthorized repairs" turned countless ordinary citizens into technology policy activists, after DRM (and the company's EULA) prohibited the lion's share of repair or modification of tractors customers thought they owned. These restrictions only worked to drive up costs for owners, who faced either paying significantly more money for "authorized" repair (which for many owners involved hauling tractors hundreds of miles and shelling out thousands of additional dollars), or toying around with pirated firmware just to ensure the products they owned actually worked.

Seven years later and this movement is only growing. This week Senator Jon Tester said he was introducing new legislation (full text here, pdf) that would require tractor and other agricultural hardware manufacturers to make manuals, spare parts, and and software access codes publicly available:

"We’ve got to figure out ways to empower farmers to make sure they can stay on the land. This is one of the ways to do it,” Tester said. “I think that the more we can empower farmers to be able to control their own destiny, which is what this bill does, the safer food chains are going to be."

The legislation comes as John Deere recently was hit with two new lawsuits accusing the company of violating antitrust laws by unlawfully monopolizing the tractor repair market. In 2018 John Deere had promised to make sweeping changes to address farmers' complaints, though by 2021 those changes had yet to materialize. Tester's legislation also comes as a new US PIRG survey shows that a bipartisan mass of famers overwhelmingly support reform on this front.

Tester's proposal is just one of several new efforts to rein in attempts to monopolize repair, be it John Deere or Apple. More that a dozen state-level laws have been proposed, and the Biden administration's recent executive order on competition also urges the FTC to craft tougher rules on repair monopolization efforts. In an era rife with partisan bickering, it's refreshing to see an issue with such broad, bipartisan public support, resulting in an issue that only had niche support a half decade ago rocketing into the mainstream.

Debbie Allen, who helped stand up the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council here, says Green and the Jones administration are jeopardizing a federal grant.

The bakery-cafe operator known locally as Saint Louis Bread Co. has launched nationwide a new feature in its mobile app that lets customers order meals from their table inside its restaurants.

MADISON COUNTY, Ill. - Nearly 3,000 people in Madison County, Illinois are without power Wednesday morning. Southwestern Electric Cooperative said 2,900 lost power at about 6 a.m. The electric company has sent crews to the area to find out what the source of the outage is and to make repairs. "The outage is affecting members [...]

Missouri DHSS is canceling all its state-operated drive-through sites Wednesday and Thursday, as is the St. Louis County Department of Public Health.

New St. Louis County Police Chief Kenneth Gregory says his appointment is probably one of the biggest changes ever in the department. The county's first Black police chief moves into the job as officials are dealing with ongoing racial issues and discrimination lawsuits.

The development would have 1.4 million square feet of office flex and distribution buildings or warehouses on at least 121 acres.

TOPEKA — U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran and Jon Tester say swift action is needed to ensure post-9/11 combat veterans who were exposed to burn pits can receive medical care. Moran, a Kansas Republican, and Tester, a Montana Democrat, in a news conference Tuesday outlined a billion-dollar plan to offer access to VA medical care to […]

The post Kansas, Montana senators unveil plan to provide VA care for burn pit exposure appeared first on Missouri Independent.

ALTON - Interim Principal Timothy J. Harmon sent out a message to parents and the media early this morning that Marquette Catholic High School will close for Wednesday, February 2, 2022, due to inclement weather. "Good morning Marquette families," he said. "We are having a 'traditional' snow day today. There will be no virtual learning today. Stay home and be safe. I will issue updates later this afternoon or evening. God bless. Thank you!" For the full list of school/community cancellations see below: https://www.riverbender.com/articles/details/area-schoolcommunity-cancellations-56421.cfm If you have a cancellation, e-mail news@riverbender.com or text (618) 623-5930.

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ST. LOUIS - A crash shut down eastbound 64 at 270 near Town and Country for a time early Wednesday morning. MoDOT completely shut down the eastbound direction of 64 in order to work on clearing that crash. The crash happened at 5:41 a.m. Starting at about 6 a.m., some traffic was able to get [...]

GRANITE CITY - Granite City School District Superintendent Stephanie Cann issued information to families and the public late Tuesday about the upcoming winter storm. Cann said: "Dear GCSD9 Families, The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for our surrounding area. Severe conditions, including potential snowfall of between 6” and 13”, may make road conditions hazardous. "For this reason, Granite City Community Unit School District #9 will NOT hold in-person learning on Wednesday, February 2, 2022. Students and teachers will have an E-Learning Day . All sports and extracurricular activities are canceled. "Please refer to the E-Learning Student Expectations on the GCSD9 website for detailed information. Thank you and be safe."

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