
Duncan Connors. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH Collective will is all that can overcome intolerance and bullying Duncan Connors writes. Recently, I wrote in the ODT on the rise of bullying and lying in every day life. Both concern power over others. However, we do not live in a vacuum. We live within society. Consent and indifference fuels toxicity. Catholic priest Fr David Ardagh Walter, (a founder of CND) once explained bad occurred not due to a surplus of evil, but an absence of good. We are all naturally good but the decision to not standing leads to great wrongdoing and injustice. We normalise bad behaviour. Normalisation is mostly an innocuous process. It is the adoption of something new: technology, the acceptance of activities once considered wrong. Society evolves and we move on. However, another aspect of normalisation that academics, historians, psychologists and sociologists have studied since the 20th century is how can advanced societies normalise the very worse conduct towards one another? Examples include the French Revolution, the Holocaust or the Soviet purges. More recently, we are now witnessing significant acceptance of aggressive and confrontational attitudes online by individuals such as the deeply unpleasant Andrew Tate. The once strange and unacceptable becomes familiar and tolerated. This is not necessarily a bad thing: I wrote this article on an Emirates flight on an Apple laptop. My boarding pass was on my phone. The same phone Mum uses to nag me from London. That is good normalisation, the acceptance by society of new technology. Society evolves and moves on. That's a good thing. But there is a darker side. In an age of extremes where vocal minorities at either end of the political spectrum dominate, we have become a ground down silent majority. The endless confrontational hoo-ha on the internet is a curse. The dam broke in 1994 with the election to the US congress of an angry, radical, right-wing and evangelical Republican Party led by the confrontational firebrand Newt Gingrich. They focused their ire on the permissive attitudes of the Clinton administration, the president’s family, friends and associates. Little did they know their actions would influence political parties abroad, in Australia and New Zealand, the British Brexit movement, the European far right and the internet conspiracy fuelled Maga movement supporting Donald Trump. While we have normalised many positive aspects of the internet, few predicted the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories. One who did was academic and science fiction author David Brin. In his 1990 book Earth Brin predicted exactly how the internet would become toxic. He saw in the giddy rush to make fortunes from the implementation of this new technology, we would brush over the necessary process of thoughtful reflection as merely the rumblings of habitual party poopers. The best explanation comes from the work of the Italian philosopher Antonio Gramsci. He divided society into three elements; the rulers, the ruled and the bourgeoisie in between. He stated the following: the bourgeoisie will always do what the rulers want because a) they aspired to joining, even had pretensions of being, part of the ruling class, and b) they saw themselves as superior to the ruled, even though they are effectively part of the same cohort. Therefore, their support of the decisional class will always be forthcoming due to their self-interest and aspirations. All totalitarian regimes in history had substantial civil services comprised of the above, as well as the support of business and civil interest groups that benefit from the new regime. However, even in regular, democratic, developed nations, particularly in the politics of the workplace, the same cohort will support the ascendent and those in control. This can be innocuous but due to the factors outlined above, in recent years increasingly this had led to toxic and passive aggressive behaviour, if that is what is now considered acceptable. The consequence is stagnation as the creative people businesses and society need to generate new ideas and productivity tend to be singled out and marginalised. They walk away and we are all the poorer because of it. The solution? Simple: tolerance and understanding the view and lives of the other. How can this happen? I have no idea. It's down to society to change itself. This requires a collective process across all social boundaries and beliefs. I can only pray, hope, even plead and beg we can all look within ourselves and challenge our ways in an age of division born of toxicity and confrontation. — Duncan Connors is an Otago business academic.
SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge ( OTCMKTS:SPXXF – Get Free Report ) was the target of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 400 shares, an increase of 100.0% from the November 30th total of 200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 0 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently ∞ days. SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge Price Performance Shares of SPXXF stock opened at $7.78 on Friday. SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge has a 12 month low of $7.78 and a 12 month high of $7.78. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $7.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.17. SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .According to TMZ , a recording of The Juice confessing to the 1994 killings that captivated a nation and led to one of the most high-profile murder cases in American history has gotten loose and found its way into the hands of police. Per the media outlet, the recording wound up with Minnesota police after being found in the backpack of Simpson's former bodyguard Iroc Avelli as part of an investigation of a separate case. More news: Trevor Lawrence Breaks Silence After Scary Head Injury in Jaguars' Loss to Texans Stored on a thumb drive, the recording allegedly features Simpson confessing to the twin killings of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her gentleman friend Ron Goldman. Acting on a tip from the LAPD, police in Bloomington, Minnesota, began looking into the contents of a backpack they'd seized from Avelli two years earlier, including the thumb drive. TMZ explains : "Our law enforcement sources say the thumb drive in question was tied up in ongoing litigation ... with Avelli and his lawyer suing the Minnesota cops to get back all his seized items -- however, in July, a judge denied a motion to return the belongings. So, as it stands, the drive is in Bloomington PD's custody, but we don't know if they've dug into what's on it ... or whether they've shared any info with LAPD." No matter what's on the thumb drive, it won't have too much of an impact on Simpson as he died in April at the age of 76. It also won't really affect his legacy all that much as many people have believed he got away with murder ever since his acquittal in 1995 following an 11-month trial that generated movies, books, and TV series by the boatload. Largely lost in the limelight of the murders and the fallout was Simpson's decorated football career. The winner of the Heisman Trophy as a senior at USC, Simpson became the first overall pick in the 1969 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. A powerful runner, Simpson played nine seasons in Buffalo and earned six Pro Bowl selections while leading the NFL in rushing yards four times. Simpson won the MVP award and the AP Offensive Player of the Year Award in 1973 and remains among the league's all-time leaders in several statistical categories: 29th in career rushing attempts (2,404), 21st in rushing yards (11,236), and 11th in rushing yards per game (83.2). For more on the NFL , head to Newsweek Sports .CEVA, Inc. (NASDAQ:CEVA) Stake Lifted by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.
T he Lonely City by Olivia Laing looks at loneliness in its emotional and psychological dimensions, using New York City as a metaphor for isolation. The book is half-memoir, but also delves into the lives of the city’s most compelling artists — Andy Warhol, Edward Hopper and David Wojnarowicz — all of whom used art to explore their own feelings of isolation and the attendant ugliness. Laing emphasises that loneliness is about the emotional distance between people, often exacerbated by modern society’s emphasis on individualism. As grief and isolation became the norm during the pandemic, different people navigated the storm of their emotions in different ways. The COVID-19 pandemic and multiple lockdowns promoted remote work culture and social distancing has scarred people socially in different ways. For Arunima Singhal, 20, the pandemic was one of the darkest times of her life. Her family grappled with a deep wedge of isolation, each member waking up, doing the chores only to go back to sleep. “There seemed to be barely any point reaching out to people because I wasn’t sure what to talk about. I remember it just really felt like I had to push myself to exist.” Many people also find it hard to remember the person that they were prior to the pandemic, which forms the passageway to feelings of guilt, depersonalisation, and detachment. “I finally started to understand Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb,” says Singhal, as she laughs. Tanishqa Mathur, 24, talks about how the pandemic felt like it was a whole other world. “Even though my friend and I found different ways to stay in touch (like watching online movies), we couldn’t trust the reality of virtual connections, and since there was no certainty as to when or if the pandemic would end, loneliness held a sort of gravity.” Now, she says, the pandemic changed how she views all of her relationships with her friends and her romantic partners. The absolute physical isolation seems to have hit several people hard. The loss of touch beckoned people to go online and look at peoples’ lives voyeuristically whilst barely making an effort to change their own. Gen Z is also one of the first generations to fully grow up with so much technology at the press of a button, which seems to have acted as a catalyst to enable things to spiral out of control. While grief and isolation became prevalent in COVID era, it’s aftermath still persists in various ways. Though screens have bridged the distances amongst people, it has also left people emotionally drained. “Many people are now connecting online, but these interactions lack the warmth of face-to-face contact, leaving people feeling detached,” says a Mumbai-based psychotherapist, Neha Mehta. Loneliness has come across a public health crisis in the past few years and is often linked with suicide, mental health disorders and substance abuse. Many school and college students are struggling to adjust and reconnect with their peers after two years of online learning. The increasing consumption of social media and digital interactions during the COVID era has left many people, especially the youth feeling a sense of “digital isolation.” WHO estimated that 10% of adolescents and 25% of old people in India are alone. India’s loneliness epidemic is not only a mental health crisis, it has also come across as a societal challenge threatening social connections and bonds among people. madhumitasharma9318@gmail.com treya.sinha@gmail.com Published - November 24, 2024 02:27 am IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit
One of Joe Rogan 's podcast guests worried fans after they heard an unusual noise during the show. During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience , the UFC commentator had on Jimmy Corsetti and Dan Richards, who, according to the episode description, are "independent researchers whose YouTube channels, Bright Insight and DeDunking the Past , respectively, examine lost civilizations and alternative history." At the beginning of the show, Rogan and his guests discussed the Roman ruins of Baalbek, a city located east of the Litani River in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley. While Corsetti questioned the city's origins, a snapping sound could be heard in the background. "8:02 I thought bros neck broke," user @plebhed commented on the episode after it was uploaded to YouTube. At the time of writing, it had been liked 22 times. Thankfully, it was just the sound of Richards' headphones falling off his head. "Whoops," he said as Corsetti continued to share his theory about Baalbek. Newsweek reached out to a spokesperson for Rogan via email for comment on Friday. It is often believed that the Phoenicians—an ancient Semitic group of people—were the first to build significantly in Baalbek. However, it is unknown whether the Phoenicians were the first to build or if another culture existed before them. The Romans also built on Baalbek. Corsetti strongly believes that an ancient civilization built Baalbek before both groups. "If they're going to say that this was created by the Romans—One, people need to understand that the Romans were renowned for documenting everything, yet this site is not credited to anybody. They don't know exactly who did it or when, but the academics conclude that it had to have been the Romans or the Phoenicians because, of course, there was no one before them," he said. "There is evidence of at least two, but arguably three different architectures that were done at this site. And I would conclude that this is evidence that this site existed in prehistoric times. There's also—I can show you encyclopedias that talk about Baalbek being prehistoric in nature dating back 11,000 years of human history." Elsewhere in the episode, Rogan criticized Bill Gates , claiming the billionaire is "responsible" for causing widespread harm during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rogan has previously spread misinformation about the virus, lockdowns and vaccines on his podcast. When the vaccine emerged, anti-vaxxers spread claims that the former Microsoft CEO had placed microchips in the vaccine to track or influence people's behavior. None of these conspiracy theories have been proven. "Bill Gates, who's on television telling everybody, 'Get the vaccine, you won't get COVID. And then afterward, that didn't work after he had unloaded all of his stock, it wasn't effective," Rogan said during the episode, adding: "It turns out COVID wasn't as bad as we thought it was. Well, you guys are really responsible for a bunch of people taking a medication that was unproven." Rogan addressed Gates: "You're responsible for all the side effects. You're responsible for all these, and you're responsible for fearmongering, lying, closing down businesses, ruining economies, changing the political structure of the country."
Sunday night's Philadelphia Eagles' 37-20 victory at the Los Angeles Rams was a record-setter and an attention-getter ... especially, as far as Saquon Barkley knew, when it comes to attention from the NFL people who administer drug tests. Barkley's spectacular 255-rushing-yard, two-touchdown game saw the former New York Giants back lead the Eagles to a 9-2 start. Following the game and his 300-total-yards day, several other stars on the Eagles took notice of just how good Barkley really is. "He's the best in the league. He's the best at what he does," Quarterback Jalen Hurts said. "He's a bad man." "Bad'' as in ... so good the league wanted to test him for drugs? As it turns out, the note in his stall in the visitor's locker room calling for a league test was a prank orchestrated by tight end Dallas Goedert. Related: Can Eagles Compete With Red-Hot Lions? Barkley is in a neck-and-neck race with Derrick Henry of the Baltimore Ravens for the rushing title. ... and deserves to be in the MVP conversation as well. Running backs rarely win the award - it's become a QB thing - but if Barkley reaches 2,000 rushing yards this season? It'll be a conversation piece ... and no joke. Unlike the drug test note left in his locker. Related: NFL MVP Race: Josh Allen vs. Saquon Barkley?OTTAWA — A lawyer for terrorism suspect Mohamed Harkat told a Federal Court judge Tuesday the Algerian-born refugee has been linked to extremists through speculation, not hard evidence. Harkat, 56, was arrested in Ottawa in December 2002 on suspicion of being an al-Qaida sleeper agent. Harkat says he fled strife-ridden Algeria and worked with an aid agency in Pakistan before he arrived in Canada in 1995 using a false Saudi passport. He denies any involvement in terrorism. The federal government has long been trying to deport the former gas-station attendant using a security certificate — a legal tool for removing non-citizens suspected of ties to extremism or espionage. A Federal Court judge who reviewed the certificate ruled in 2010 there were grounds to believe Harkat is a security threat who maintained ties to Osama bin Laden's terror network after coming to Canada. The judge found Harkat operated a guesthouse for Ibn Khattab and his organization for at least 15 months in Pakistan, demonstrating active membership in an organization involved in terrorist activities. Harkat is back in Federal Court challenging a 2018 decision by a federal delegate that he should not be allowed to remain in Canada. He argues he faces a risk of torture if returned to Algeria. In a written submission to the court, federal lawyers note the delegate found that Harkat’s role as the operator of Khattab's guesthouse made the recruitment, vetting, preparation and training of jihadists and terrorists possible. This allowed the Khattab organization, and the broader bin Laden network with which it was linked, to commit various terrorist acts, the submission adds. In their own submission, counsel for Harkat question the evidence that Khattab was indeed a terrorist. Lawyer Barbara Jackman, representing Harkat, told the hearing Tuesday the federal conclusions were not only unreasonable, but "also it's taking facts and speculating to fill in the blanks." Jackman said operating a guesthouse is not a crime. "Doesn't it depend on the knowledge and intent of the person who's operating the guesthouse?" asked Justice John Norris. The judge suggested the government would need to establish that Harkat knew the purpose of the place. Jackman said Harkat denies even working at the guesthouse. Even so, she took issue with the evidentiary reasoning. "You have to show a connection to the crime or the criminal organization in some kind of real way," she said. "He's a passive actor running a hotel that people come in and out of." At the end of the hearing, Norris said he would make a ruling on Harkat's challenge at a later date. Civil libertarians have criticized the security certificate process as fundamentally unjust because the detainee sees only a summary of the accusations, making them difficult to challenge. In a 2014 ruling, the Supreme Court of Canada said the security certificate regime does not violate the person's right to know and contest the allegations they face. The Supreme Court also concluded Harkat "benefited from a fair process" when Noel reviewed his case. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2024. Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press
WSP Global Inc. ( TSE:WSP – Get Free Report ) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, December 31st, Zacks Dividends reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of 0.375 per share on Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. WSP Global Trading Up 0.4 % Shares of WSP Global stock opened at C$255.33 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of C$248.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$232.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 71.81, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.13. WSP Global has a fifty-two week low of C$180.73 and a fifty-two week high of C$259.60. The company has a market cap of C$31.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.82. WSP Global ( TSE:WSP – Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported C$2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of C$2.24. The company had revenue of C$3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$3 billion. WSP Global had a return on equity of 9.40% and a net margin of 4.03%. As a group, equities analysts predict that WSP Global will post 9.5687404 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Analyst Ratings Changes Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on WSP Global About WSP Global ( Get Free Report ) WSP Global Inc operates as a professional services consulting firm in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Australia, and internationally. It advises, plans, designs, and manages projects for rail, transit, aviation, highways, bridges, tunnels, water, maritime, and urban infrastructure for public and private clients, construction contractors, and other partners. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for WSP Global Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for WSP Global and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .With nearly all of the votes counted, left-leaning Mr Milanovic won 49% while his main challenger Dragan Primorac, a candidate of the ruling conservative HDZ party, trailed far behind with 19%. Pre-election polls had predicted that the two would face off in the second round on January 12, as none of the eight presidential election contenders were projected to get more than 50% of the vote. Mr Milanovic thanked his supporters but warned that “this was just a first run”. “Let’s not be triumphant, let’s be realistic, firmly on the ground,” he said. “We must fight all over again. It’s not over till it’s over.” Mr Milanovic, the most popular politician in Croatia, has served as prime minister in the past. Populist in style, the 58-year-old has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and continuous sparring between the two has been a recent hallmark of Croatia’s political scene. Mr Plenkovic has sought to portray the vote as one about Croatia’s future in the EU and Nato. He has labelled Mr Milanovic “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia’s international standing. “The difference between him (Mr Primorac) and Milanovic is quite simple: Milanovic is leading us East, Primorac is leading us West,” he said. Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme commander of the military. Mr Milanovic has criticised the Nato and European Union support for Ukraine and has often insisted that Croatia should not take sides. He has said Croatia should stay away from global disputes, thought it is a member of both Nato and the EU. Mr Milanovic has also blocked Croatia’s participation in a Nato-led training mission for Ukraine, declaring that “no Croatian soldier will take part in somebody else’s war”. His main rival in the election, Mr Primorac, has stated that “Croatia’s place is in the West, not the East”. However, his bid for the presidency has been marred by a high-level corruption case that landed Croatia’s health minister in jail last month and which featured prominently in pre-election debates. Trailing a distant third in the pre-election polls is Marija Selak Raspudic, a conservative independent candidate. She has focused her election campaign on the economic troubles of ordinary citizens, corruption and issues such as population decline in the country of some 3.8 million. Sunday’s presidential election is Croatia’s third vote this year, following a snap parliamentary election in April and the European Parliament balloting in June.Shiseido Company, Limited ( OTCMKTS:SSDOY – Get Free Report ) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,000 shares, a decline of 58.1% from the November 30th total of 38,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 414,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.0 days. Shiseido Trading Up 2.6 % Shares of SSDOY stock opened at $17.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a PE ratio of 897.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.85. Shiseido has a 1 year low of $16.62 and a 1 year high of $33.88. Shiseido Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Shiseido Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Shiseido and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
Chaikin scores 21 off the bench, Lafayette knocks off NCAA Div. III-Rosemont 91-45ST. PETERSBURG — The Rays and Major League Baseball have made some slight adjustments in their 2025 schedule to avoid playing too many games in the summer heat and rain at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. The Rays are swapping a home-and-away series with the Angels and the Twins, moving road games to Tampa in April and May and instead playing in Minnesota and Anaheim in July and August. The schedule modifications will keep the Rays — and their fans — from too many uncomfortable dates at Steinbrenner Field. But it also means the Rays will have a schedule that is overburdened with road games in the summer months. The Rays will play at home for 37 of their first 58 games when the weather is somewhat cooler in April/May, but will be on the road for 35 of 51 games in July and August. The April 7-9 series that was originally scheduled for Anaheim will now be played in Tampa on April 8-10. In exchange, the Rays will move three homes games originally scheduled for Aug. 5-7 to Anaheim on Aug. 4-6. That means the Rays will have a 12-game road trip across 14 days from Anaheim to Seattle to Las Vegas to San Francisco. A May 26-28 series against the Twins in Minneapolis will now be played on the same dates in Tampa. In exchange, the Rays will go to Target Field on July 4-6. That will be part of a 10-game road trek from Minnesota to Detroit to Boston right before the All-Star break.