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2025-01-13
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291 super jili NoneFacebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Women will for the first time make up a majority of state legislators in Colorado and New Mexico next year, but at least 13 states saw losses in female representation after the November election, according to a count released Thursday by the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics. While women will fill a record number of state legislative seats in 2025, the overall uptick will be slight, filling just over third of legislative seats. Races in some states are still being called. "We certainly would like to see a faster rate of change and more significant increases in each election cycle to get us to a place where parity in state legislatures is less novel and more normal," said Kelly Dittmar, director of research at the CAWP, which is a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. As of Wednesday, at least 2,450 women will serve in state legislatures, representing 33.2% of the seats nationwide. The previous record was set in 2024 with 2,431 women, according to the CAWP. Questions about Gillian’s Wonderland finances draw angry response from Mita Absecon police detain suspect in dollar store robbery Pleasantville man accused of murdering girlfriend Northfield intersection to become four-way stop 4 Bridgeton men indicted in alleged sex trafficking ring Northfield Councilman Leeds resigns, citing concerns over Mayor Chau's criminal charges Wonderland developer to pitch vision again Wednesday at Ocean City Tabernacle These South Jersey bars and restaurants have transformed into holiday wonderlands Former Galloway gymnastics co-owner accused of sex with minor to remain in jail Atlantic County suing NJ Juvenile Justice Commission over placement of youth offenders District overspending main focus for new Atlantic City school board member Ron Bailey Who are The Press 2024 Boys Soccer All-Stars? High-scoring St. Augustine senior is The Press Boys Soccer Player of the Year Atlantic City mayor waives first appearance on witness tampering charge Saquon Barkley on pace to set Eagles rushing record against Panthers, eyes Dickerson's NFL record The number of Republican women, at least 851, will break the previous record of 815 state lawmakers set in 2024. "But still, Republican women are very underrepresented compared to Democratic women," Debbie Walsh, director of the CAWP, said. From left, House Maj. Whip Reena Szczepanski, D-Santa Fe, Rep. D. Wonda Johnson, D-Church Rock and Rep. Cristina Parajon, D-Albuquerque, talk July 18 before the start of a special session, in Santa Fe, N.M. By the most recent count, 19 states will have increased the number of women in their state legislatures, according to the CAWP. The most notable increases were in New Mexico and Colorado, where women will for the first time make up a majority of lawmakers. In New Mexico, voters sent an 11 additional women to the chambers. Colorado previously attained gender parity in 2023 and is set to tip over to a slight female majority in the upcoming year. The states follow Nevada, which was the first in the country to see a female majority in the legislature following elections in 2018. Next year, women will make up almost 62% of state lawmakers in Nevada, far exceeding parity. Women in California's Senate will make up the chamber's majority for the first time in 2025 as well. Women also made notable gains in South Dakota, increasing its number by at least nine. Four of South Carolina's Sister Senators, from left, Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D-Walterboro, Sen. Mia McLeod, I-Columbia, Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, and Sen. Penry Gustafson, R-Camden, stand in front of the Senate on June 26 with their John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award in Columbia, S.C. At least thirteen states emerged from the election with fewer female lawmakers than before, with the most significant loss occurring in South Carolina. This year, the only three Republican women in the South Carolina Senate lost their primaries after they stopped a total abortion ban from passing. Next year, only two women, who are Democrats, will be in the 46-member Senate. No other state in the country will have fewer women in its upper chamber, according to the CAWP. Women make up 55% of the state's registered voters. Half the members in the GOP dominated state were elected in 2012 or before, so it will likely be the 2040s before any Republican woman elected in the future can rise to leadership or a committee chairmanship in the chamber, which doles out leadership positions based on seniority. A net loss of five women in the legislature means they will make up only about 13% of South Carolina's lawmakers, making the state the second lowest in the country for female representation. Only West Virginia has a smaller proportion of women in the legislature. West Virginia stands to lose one more women from its legislative ranks, furthering its representation problem in the legislature where women will make up just 11% of lawmakers. Many women, lawmakers and experts say that women's voices are needed in discussions on policy, especially at a time when state government is at its most powerful in decades. Walsh, director of the CAWP, said the new changes expected from the Trump administration will turn even more policy and regulation to the states. The experiences and perspectives women offer will be increasingly needed, she said, especially on topics related to reproductive rights, healthcare, education and childcare. "The states may have to pick up where the federal government may, in fact, be walking away," Walsh said. "And so who serves in those institutions is more important now than ever." November 7, 2024: Trump Victory Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.

From Maui to the Caribbean, Thanksgiving tournaments a beloved part of college basketball

Data Center Market: Growth to $605.96B by 2031, 6.56% CAGR 11-24-2024 09:07 PM CET | IT, New Media & Software Press release from: SkyQuest Technology Group Data Center Market Scope: Key Insights : Data Center Market size was valued at USD 342.06 Billion in 2022 and is poised to grow from USD 364.50 Billion in 2023 to USD 605.96 Billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 6.56% during the forecast period (2024-2031). Discover Your Competitive Edge with a Free Sample Report : https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/data-center-market Access the full 2024 Market report for a comprehensive understanding @ https://www.skyquestt.com/report/data-center-market In-Depth Exploration of the global Data Center Market: This report offers a thorough exploration of the global Data Center market, presenting a wealth of data that has been meticulously researched and analyzed. It identifies and examines the crucial market drivers, including pricing strategies, competitive landscapes, market dynamics, and regional growth trends. By outlining how these factors impact overall market performance, the report provides invaluable insights for stakeholders looking to navigate this complex terrain. Additionally, it features comprehensive profiles of leading market players, detailing essential metrics such as production capabilities, revenue streams, market value, volume, market share, and anticipated growth rates. This report serves as a vital resource for businesses seeking to make informed decisions in a rapidly evolving market. Trends and Insights Leading to Growth Opportunities The best insights for investment decisions stem from understanding major market trends, which simplify the decision-making process for potential investors. The research strives to discover multiple growth opportunities that readers can evaluate and potentially capitalize on, armed with all relevant data. Through a comprehensive assessment of important growth factors, including pricing, production, profit margins, and the value chain, market growth can be more accurately forecast for the upcoming years. Top Firms Evaluated in the Global Data Center Market Research Report: Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) (United States) Cisco System, Inc. (United States) Hitachi Ltd (Japan) IBM Corporation (United States) NTT Communications (Japan) ABB (Switzerland) Dell Technologies (United States) Schneider Electric (France) Comarch SA (Poland) Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (China) /KI Key Aspects of the Report: Market Summary: The report includes an overview of products/services, emphasizing the global Data Center market's overall size. It provides a summary of the segmentation analysis, focusing on product/service types, applications, and regional categories, along with revenue and sales forecasts. Competitive Analysis: This segment presents information on market trends and conditions, analyzing various manufacturers. It includes data regarding average prices, as well as revenue and sales distributions for individual players in the market. Business Profiles: This chapter provides a thorough examination of the financial and strategic data for leading players in the global Data Center market, covering product/service descriptions, portfolios, geographic reach, and revenue divisions. Sales Analysis by Region: This section provides data on market performance, detailing revenue, sales, and market share across regions. It also includes projections for sales growth rates and pricing strategies for each regional market, such as: North America: United States, Canada, and Mexico Europe: Germany, France, UK, Russia, and Italy Asia-Pacific: China, Japan, Korea, India, and Southeast Asia South America: Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, etc. Middle East and Africa: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa This in-depth research study has the capability to tackle a range of significant questions that are pivotal for understanding the market dynamics, and it specifically aims to answer the following key inquiries: How big could the global Data Center market become by the end of the forecast period? Let's explore the exciting possibilities! Will the current market leader in the global Data Center segment continue to hold its ground, or is change on the horizon? Which regions are poised to experience the most explosive growth in the Data Center market? Discover where the future opportunities lie! Is there a particular player that stands out as the dominant force in the global Data Center market? Let's find out who's leading the charge! What are the key factors driving growth and the challenges holding back the global Data Center market? Join us as we uncover the forces at play! To establish the important thing traits, Ask Our Experts @ https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/data-center-market Table of Contents Chapter 1 Industry Overview 1.1 Definition 1.2 Assumptions 1.3 Research Scope 1.4 Market Analysis by Regions 1.5 Market Size Analysis from 2023 to 2030 11.6 COVID-19 Outbreak: Medical Computer Cart Industry Impact Chapter 2 Competition by Types, Applications, and Top Regions and Countries 2.1 Market (Volume and Value) by Type 2.3 Market (Volume and Value) by Regions Chapter 3 Production Market Analysis 3.1 Worldwide Production Market Analysis 3.2 Regional Production Market Analysis Chapter 4 Medical Computer Cart Sales, Consumption, Export, Import by Regions (2023-2023) Chapter 5 North America Market Analysis Chapter 6 East Asia Market Analysis Chapter 7 Europe Market Analysis Chapter 8 South Asia Market Analysis Chapter 9 Southeast Asia Market Analysis Chapter 10 Middle East Market Analysis Chapter 11 Africa Market Analysis Chapter 12 Oceania Market Analysis Chapter 13 Latin America Market Analysis Chapter 14 Company Profiles and Key Figures in Medical Computer Cart Business Chapter 15 Market Forecast (2023-2030) Chapter 16 Conclusions Address: 1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886 Phone: USA (+1) 351-333-4748 Email: sales@skyquestt.com About Us: SkyQuest Technology is leading growth consulting firm providing market intelligence, commercialization and technology services. It has 450+ happy clients globally. This release was published on openPR.N.C. State defensive coordinator Tony Gibson was named head coach at Marshall on Sunday, shortly after Thundering Herd coach Charles Huff's hiring was announced at Southern Miss. Gibson, 52, will take his first head-coaching job in college and return to his home state, where he served two stints at West Virginia over the past two decades. The terms of Gibson's deal were not immediately disclosed. “We could not be happier to welcome Tony Gibson home as our 32nd head coach at Marshall University,” school President Brad Smith said in a statement. “Coach Gibson has led some of the top programs on the national level, but in the end, his heart desired to return to the mountains from which he came." Gibson's hiring was announced less than an hour after Huff was named coach at Southern Miss. Huff coached Marshall to a 31-3 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette in the Sun Belt championship game on Saturday night. Marshall (10-3) won seven straight games for its first 10-win season since 2015. Gibson coached defensive backs at West Virginia under Rich Rodriguez from 2001 to 2007. He returned in 2013 under Dana Holgorsen as safeties coach, then became defensive coordinator a year later and stayed until Holgorsen left at the end of the 2018 season. Gibson spent six seasons at N.C. State. He had other assistant coaching stints at Pitt and under Rodriguez at Michigan and Arizona. N.C. State’s defense ranked near the bottom of the ACC this season, allowing 30.5 points and 385 yards per game. The Wolfpack’s best season under Gibson was in 2022, when it tied with Louisville for the fewest points allowed at 19.2 per game and was second in yards allowed at 327. “My family and I are excited to start this journey, but we all thank you for your support and the wonderful memories,” Gibson wrote to the N.C. State community in a post Sunday on the social media platform X. Gibson, who is from Van, West Virginia, graduated in 1994 from Glenville State, where he played defensive back. “We have recruited a proven coach that aspires to be at Marshall and to sustain the success we have come to appreciate and expect,” athletic director Christian Spears said in the statement. "We can’t wait to get started with him and his staff.” Marshall associate head coach Telly Lockette will serve as interim coach in the Independence Bowl against No. 19 Army (11-1) on Dec. 28 in Shreveport, Louisiana. One of Gibson’s first tasks will be replenishing Marshall’s roster. The Thundering Herd signed only 11 recruits in the recent early signing period. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Women will for the first time make up a majority of state legislators in Colorado and New Mexico next year, but at least 13 states saw losses in female representation after the November election, according to a count released Thursday by the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics. While women will fill a record number of state legislative seats in 2025, the overall uptick will be slight, filling just over third of legislative seats. Races in some states are still being called. "We certainly would like to see a faster rate of change and more significant increases in each election cycle to get us to a place where parity in state legislatures is less novel and more normal," said Kelly Dittmar, director of research at the CAWP, which is a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. As of Wednesday, at least 2,450 women will serve in state legislatures, representing 33.2% of the seats nationwide. The previous record was set in 2024 with 2,431 women, according to the CAWP. The number of Republican women, at least 851, will break the previous record of 815 state lawmakers set in 2024. "But still, Republican women are very underrepresented compared to Democratic women," Debbie Walsh, director of the CAWP, said. From left, House Maj. Whip Reena Szczepanski, D-Santa Fe, Rep. D. Wonda Johnson, D-Church Rock and Rep. Cristina Parajon, D-Albuquerque, talk July 18 before the start of a special session, in Santa Fe, N.M. By the most recent count, 19 states will have increased the number of women in their state legislatures, according to the CAWP. The most notable increases were in New Mexico and Colorado, where women will for the first time make up a majority of lawmakers. In New Mexico, voters sent an 11 additional women to the chambers. Colorado previously attained gender parity in 2023 and is set to tip over to a slight female majority in the upcoming year. The states follow Nevada, which was the first in the country to see a female majority in the legislature following elections in 2018. Next year, women will make up almost 62% of state lawmakers in Nevada, far exceeding parity. Women in California's Senate will make up the chamber's majority for the first time in 2025 as well. Women also made notable gains in South Dakota, increasing its number by at least nine. Four of South Carolina's Sister Senators, from left, Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D-Walterboro, Sen. Mia McLeod, I-Columbia, Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, and Sen. Penry Gustafson, R-Camden, stand in front of the Senate on June 26 with their John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award in Columbia, S.C. At least thirteen states emerged from the election with fewer female lawmakers than before, with the most significant loss occurring in South Carolina. This year, the only three Republican women in the South Carolina Senate lost their primaries after they stopped a total abortion ban from passing. Next year, only two women, who are Democrats, will be in the 46-member Senate. No other state in the country will have fewer women in its upper chamber, according to the CAWP. Women make up 55% of the state's registered voters. Half the members in the GOP dominated state were elected in 2012 or before, so it will likely be the 2040s before any Republican woman elected in the future can rise to leadership or a committee chairmanship in the chamber, which doles out leadership positions based on seniority. A net loss of five women in the legislature means they will make up only about 13% of South Carolina's lawmakers, making the state the second lowest in the country for female representation. Only West Virginia has a smaller proportion of women in the legislature. West Virginia stands to lose one more women from its legislative ranks, furthering its representation problem in the legislature where women will make up just 11% of lawmakers. Many women, lawmakers and experts say that women's voices are needed in discussions on policy, especially at a time when state government is at its most powerful in decades. Walsh, director of the CAWP, said the new changes expected from the Trump administration will turn even more policy and regulation to the states. The experiences and perspectives women offer will be increasingly needed, she said, especially on topics related to reproductive rights, healthcare, education and childcare. "The states may have to pick up where the federal government may, in fact, be walking away," Walsh said. "And so who serves in those institutions is more important now than ever." November 7, 2024: Trump Victory Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.NVIDIA Corporation, a leading American technology company specializing in graphics processing units (GPUs) and artificial intelligence, is under scrutiny for potential violations that could result in substantial fines. The company's significant presence in China mainland, where it generated 15% of its revenue in the third quarter, adds an interesting dimension to the unfolding situation.

Share Tweet Share Share Email In Sacramento, as in many other cities, the adoption of smart home technologies has gained significant momentum over the last decade. One of the most practical and innovative additions to the smart home ecosystem is the smart garage door opener. As people continue to prioritize convenience, security, and energy efficiency, the future of smart garage doors in Sacramento looks increasingly promising. This article explores the evolution of smart garage doors, the benefits they offer, the technological innovations shaping their future, and how they are transforming homes in Sacramento. What Are Smart Garage Doors? A smart garage door is an advanced, automated system that can be controlled remotely through smartphones, tablets, or voice commands, allowing homeowners to open, close, or monitor the door from virtually anywhere. These systems typically integrate with other smart home devices, such as security cameras, smart lighting, and voice assistants like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, offering a seamless experience. Unlike traditional garage doors that require manual operation or remote control devices, smart garage doors use connected technology to provide an enhanced user experience. Through specialized apps, users can receive real-time alerts, set schedules, and even grant access to guests without needing to be physically present. Key Features and Benefits of Smart Garage Doors 1. Convenience and Remote Control One of the primary advantages of smart garage doors is the ability to control your garage door remotely. Whether you’re coming home from work, returning from a vacation, or simply want to check if the door is closed, you can do so with just a tap on your smartphone. This convenience eliminates the need to worry about leaving the door open or getting out of your car in inclement weather to open or close the garage. For Sacramento residents, where fluctuating temperatures can make outdoor tasks inconvenient, the ability to open and close the garage door from the comfort of your home or vehicle adds a level of ease that enhances day-to-day life. 2. Enhanced Security Features Security is a top priority for homeowners, and smart garage doors take security to the next level. These systems often come with built-in security features such as automatic closing, alerts when the door is left open for too long, and the ability to lock the door remotely. Additionally, many smart garage doors are compatible with home security systems, enabling integration with cameras, motion sensors, and other monitoring devices. In a city like Sacramento, where property theft can be a concern, these security features offer peace of mind. Homeowners can monitor and control their garage doors anytime, ensuring their home and belongings are safe from intruders. 3. Energy Efficiency and Cost Savings Incorporating a smart garage door into a home can contribute to energy efficiency. Some advanced systems feature weather-resistant seals, insulation, and energy-efficient materials that help regulate the temperature inside the garage. By preventing heat loss or drafts, these smart doors can reduce the need for additional heating or cooling, which can translate into cost savings over time. For residents of Sacramento, a region that experiences both hot summers and cool winters, these energy-saving features can be especially valuable in reducing heating and cooling costs while maintaining a comfortable indoor environment. 4. Integration with Other Smart Home Devices Smart garage doors can seamlessly integrate with other home automation systems, offering a unified control experience. For instance, your garage door can be connected to smart lights, so the lights turn on when the garage door opens. Similarly, it can be synced with voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or Apple HomeKit, allowing homeowners to control the door with simple voice commands. This integration is especially beneficial for busy Sacramento residents who want a home that functions smoothly and efficiently. By connecting the garage door opener to other smart devices, users can automate tasks like lighting or security, improving overall convenience. 5. Increased Property Value Adding a smart garage door to your home can increase its resale value. Homebuyers are increasingly looking for properties with modern, tech-savvy features, and smart home devices are high on the list. In fact, homes with smart features are often seen as more appealing and offer a competitive edge in the market. Smart garage doors, as part of a larger smart home ecosystem, can make a property stand out to prospective buyers, making it a wise investment for Sacramento homeowners looking to enhance their property value. Innovations Shaping the Future of Smart Garage Doors The future of smart garage doors in Sacramento is not just about convenience and security. Technological advancements are paving the way for new and improved features that will revolutionize how homeowners interact with their garage doors. Let’s explore some of the most notable innovations that are shaping the future of smart garage doors: 1. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning As AI and machine learning technologies continue to evolve, smart garage doors are becoming increasingly intelligent. Future systems will be able to learn and adapt to users’ behaviors. For example, a smart garage door could recognize when you typically arrive home and automatically open without needing any manual input. Over time, these systems will improve their ability to predict your actions and make smarter decisions based on usage patterns. Sacramento homeowners can look forward to AI-powered smart doors that offer even more automation, reducing the need for constant interaction. 2. Biometric Access Biometric technology, such as fingerprint recognition or facial recognition, is becoming more prevalent in smart home devices. In the future, smart garage doors could feature biometric access, allowing homeowners to open the garage door with their face or fingerprint. This would provide an additional layer of security and convenience, especially for families with multiple users who need access to the garage. In Sacramento, where convenience and security are a priority, biometric access to garage doors could become a game-changer for homeowners. 3. Advanced Sensors and Safety Features Another trend on the horizon is the integration of more advanced sensors into smart garage doors. Future systems will likely feature sensors that can detect objects in the garage door’s path, preventing accidents or damage to vehicles, pets, or people. Additionally, these sensors could be used to monitor the garage for any unusual activity, such as unauthorized access attempts or intruders. These sensors will enhance safety for families and pets in Sacramento, offering greater peace of mind. 4. Voice Control and Integration with Smart Assistants Voice control is rapidly gaining popularity in the smart home space, and smart garage doors are no exception. With voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri, homeowners will be able to control their garage doors using only their voice. As voice recognition technology improves, users will be able to issue commands such as “Open the garage door” or “Close the garage door” while keeping their hands free to do other tasks. For Sacramento homeowners, voice-controlled garage doors will bring even more convenience to their daily routines. 5. Cloud Integration and Remote Monitoring The future of smart garage doors will likely see more integration with cloud-based systems. Homeowners will be able to monitor their garage doors from anywhere, whether they are at work, on vacation, or across the city. By using a smartphone app or a web interface, users can check the status of their garage door, open or close it, and receive notifications about its activity. This cloud-based integration will make it even easier for Sacramento residents to manage their garage doors remotely and securely. FAQs 1. Are smart garage doors secure? Yes, smart garage doors come with advanced security features, including encryption, password protection, and remote monitoring. Additionally, many systems can be integrated with home security cameras for enhanced protection. 2. Can I open my smart garage door from anywhere? Yes, as long as you have an internet connection, you can open, close, and monitor your smart garage door remotely through a smartphone app or web interface. 3. Do smart garage doors work with other smart home devices? Yes, many smart garage doors are compatible with voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri, as well as other smart home devices, such as security cameras and smart lighting. 4. Are smart garage doors energy-efficient? Many smart garage doors come with features that help improve energy efficiency, such as insulation and weather-resistant seals, which can help regulate temperature in the garage. 5. What happens if the internet goes down? Most smart garage doors have backup options in place, such as a manual override, allowing you to open and close the door in case of an internet or power outage. Conclusion As the demand for smart home technologies continues to grow, smart garage doors are becoming an essential part of modern homes in Sacramento. With their convenience, security features, energy efficiency, and integration with other smart devices, these doors offer a practical and futuristic solution for homeowners. The innovations on the horizon, such as AI, biometric access, and advanced sensors, will only continue to enhance the functionality and appeal of smart garage doors. As more Sacramento residents adopt this technology, smart garage doors will undoubtedly become a key feature in the homes of the future. Related Items: garage doors , smart garage Share Tweet Share Share Email Recommended for you Carriage House Garage Doors: A Perfect Blend of Style and Functionality in Canada Top Features of Premium Commercial Garage Doors for Warehouses and Offices Timely garage door repair has no alternative – the benefits you can count on CommentsThe move towards a moderately accommodative stance is expected to have several positive effects on the economy. Lower borrowing costs could stimulate investment and consumption, boosting overall demand and supporting economic growth. The increased liquidity in the financial system could also help ease credit conditions for businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, which play a crucial role in driving economic activity and employment.

In the ever-evolving world of Vtubers, one name has stood out among the rest - Sora. This virtual idol has captured the hearts of fans worldwide with her charming personality, incredible talent, and unwavering determination to entertain. Now, Sora is taking her next big step in the world of virtual content creation by opening up her platform to allow other talented Vtubers to join the battle alongside her.In a surprising turn of events, Ferencváros has successfully secured a loan deal for the talented midfielder Naby Keita from a top European club. The agreement comes with a one-year loan period and an intriguing option for Ferencváros to make the move permanent through a buyout clause at the end of the season.

What would you give up in the name of health? For these biohackers, the list is long

 

49 jili super ace

2025-01-13
SAN DIEGO (AP) — With his stellar America’s Cup career behind him, Jimmy Spithill introduced his new Red Bull Italy SailGP Team on Thursday in Dubai just ahead of the opening regatta of the global league’s fifth season. Spithill, the team’s CEO and founder, pulled a major coup by hiring his old America’s Cup crewmate and fellow Australian, wing trimmer Kyle Langford, from the Australian team that dominated SailGP for the first three seasons. Italy, SailGP's 12th team, sailed its foiling 50-foot catamaran for the first time Thursday. After practice racing on Friday, the opening regatta will be Saturday and Sunday. “It’s been definitely a big push,” Spithill said in a video interview with The Associated Press. “It’s all come up really quick. We’re almost there.” Spithill left the U.S. SailGP team in November after 2 1⁄2 seasons to focus on starting the Italian team and on sailing in this year’s America’s Cup. He was co-helmsman of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team, which was eliminated by INEOS Britannia in the challenger finals. Double Olympic gold medalist Ruggero Tita will helm the Italian team, while two-time bronze medalist and recent Women’s America’s Cup winner Giulia Fava will be the strategist and Italian national champion Andrea Tesei will be the flight controller. Alex Sinclair also followed Spithill, joining grinders Matteo Celon and Enrico Voltolini, who have extensive high-performance and America’s Cup experience. Spithill said his crew has “some absolute next-generation stars, from different backgrounds, Olympics, America’s Cup, and it’s just awesome having Kyle come in.” Spithill, 45, said he’ll be on the boat only if someone gets hurt or sick. “These young guys are too good at it,” he said. “The talent that’s coming through in Italy, I mean, the results do the talking.” More stars having been switching teams in SailGP, which was co-founded by tech billionaire Larry Ellison. Signing Langford is a big deal for the new team. Shortly before the 2013 America’s Cup on San Francisco Bay, Langford was promoted to Oracle’s race crew after wing trimmer Dirk de Ridder was suspended by an international jury. With Emirates Team New Zealand at match point at 8-1, Spithill skippered Oracle to eight straight wins in one of the greatest comebacks in sports to retain the Cup. “One thing that really attracted him was a chance to start out and really play a major role with the new team and especially the emerging talent,” Spithill said. “It would have been really easy for him to say, ‘You know what? I’m comfortable with the Aussies.’ But the fact that he’s stepped out of his comfort zone and he’s challenging himself as an athlete in this stage of his career is just massive.” While talented, the Italian crew will have the least experience together in the high-performance F50 catamaran. Spithill said Langford “is going to play a huge role in getting this team up to speed. I mean, the F50 is, without a doubt, probably the hardest boat to sail out there.” After sailing for Luna Rossa in three of his eight America’s Cup campaigns, Spithill has seen how passionate Italian fans are. “When you talk about an exciting market for the sport, I mean, it doesn’t get any better than Italy,” he said. “It has a huge following in Italy and they’ve got a real cultural attachment to the ocean and the sport itself.” Spithill said immediately after Luna Rossa’s loss in early October that it was time to step away from the America’s Cup. “The point is, we didn’t get the job done so I hold myself accountable for that. And I also am seeing firsthand that this next generation of talent coming through and I believe they deserve a shot, you know?” “I really think SailGP is the future of the sport. The whole regular season, the concept makes a lot of sense,” he said. Dubai is the first of 14 regattas. At season’s end, the top three crews will race in the $2 million, winner-take-all Grand Final. Also Thursday, Rolex was announced as SailGP's first title sponsor as part of a 10-year deal. Bernie Wilson has covered sailing for The Associated Press since 1991.49 jili super ace

Mumbai: A one-day state-level workshop on drone technology and its applications was held on Saturday at the University of Mumbai (MU). The event was inaugurated by the university's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ravindra Kulkarni, alongside Naval Bajaj (IPS), the Head of the State Anti-Terrorism Squad, among others. During the event, Kulkarni encouraged MU’s Geography Department to collaborate with leading national institutions and private sector companies to introduce drone-based courses and research projects. He stressed the importance of cross-disciplinary cooperation to provide students with valuable internships and opportunities to expand their knowledge in this emerging field. In his speech, chief guest Bajaj spoke about the pioneering use of drones during the Ganesh Chaturthi immersion processions in Mumbai, highlighting how drones provided crucial oversight. He also emphasised the role of drones in controlling accidents and crises, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Bajaj elaborated on the potential of drones in combating terrorism, addressing climate change, and managing natural disasters, all while discussing the growing security challenges that need to be addressed as drone use expands. Prof. Shirish Kedare, Director of IIT Mumbai, provided a comprehensive overview of the current state and future potential of drone technology. Experts Dr. Hemant Pednekar, Dr. Kiran Naik, and Shruti Surendran shared their insights on drone applications, the future of the industry, employment prospects, and challenges within the drone sector. Their sessions aimed to guide attendees on navigating the complexities of the rapidly evolving field. The workshop was organised in collaboration with the university's Department of Geography, UAV Academy Pvt. Ltd., and the Bombay Geographical Association. As part of the workshop, UAV Academy showcased six different types of UAVs and command-and-control systems. The exhibition's highlight was a 20-foot-long UAV named Sampatti, which drew significant attention from attendees. A total of 190 students, including undergraduates, postgraduates, and researchers from affiliated colleges of MU participated in the workshop.Share Tweet Share Share Email Introduction The history of frozen food tells a captivating tale of innovation and ingenuity. Early days saw the practice of ice harvesting, eventually giving way to the advent of mechanical refrigeration. However, modern freezing techniques like Individual Quick Freezing (IQF) were the true catalysts for revolutionizing the frozen food industry. IQF technology, which rapidly freezes individual pieces of food, has become a cornerstone of the modern food supply chain. The preservation of taste, texture, and nutritional value is superior with IQF compared to traditional slow freezing methods. New possibilities have been opened up for food manufacturers and consumers alike thanks to IQF. Global Resources Direct (GRD), a leading supplier of high-quality IQF ingredients, stands at the forefront of this frozen food evolution . The Science Behind IQF IQF involves freezing individual pieces of food separately using a blast of cold air. The rapid freezing process of IQF causes smaller ice crystals to form. Smaller ice crystals help maintain the cellular structure and integrity of the food better than slow freezing. The benefits of IQF are numerous. More of the original flavor, color, and texture are retained in foods frozen using IQF. Better preservation of nutrients is another advantage. The individual freezing of each piece in IQF foods makes them easier to portion and use as needed, reducing waste. GRD has embraced IQF technology to provide customers with premium frozen ingredients that look and taste amazingly fresh. Leveraging IQF for Quality and Safety Global Resources Direct takes pride in being at the vanguard of the IQF revolution. A wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and other ingredients can be quickly frozen at the peak of freshness in GRD’s state-of-the-art IQF facility. Quality is locked in and shelf life is extended through this process. Produce is sourced from trusted growers and meticulously processed using modern freezing techniques to ensure safety and consistency. Food manufacturers can create superior products with GRD’s IQF solutions , which range from vibrant IQF fruits and vegetables to essential baking ingredients like from your bulk ingredient supplier . IQF’s Role in Food Manufacturing The role of IQF in food manufacturing is becoming increasingly vital as consumer demand for convenience and quality continues to grow. A wider range of products with longer shelf lives, reduced waste, and greater efficiency can be offered by food producers using IQF. GRD believes IQF technology will only become more crucial in the years ahead. The company’s commitment as a wholesale egg supplier and provider of must-have bakery supplies is to stay at the cutting edge of freezing innovation to support customers’ evolving needs. The power of IQF will continue to be harnessed by GRD to deliver quality you can count on, to your bulk ingredient supplier. The future of frozen food technology is bright, with IQF playing a central role. As the industry evolves, expect to see: Continued refinement and optimization of IQF processes for even better quality and efficiency Expansion of IQF applications to a wider range of food products and ingredients Integration of IQF with other advanced technologies like automation and data analytics Growing consumer awareness and appreciation of the benefits of IQF frozen foods Increased adoption of IQF by food manufacturers, retailers, and foodservice operators worldwide The GRD Advantage A partner that can keep up with the pace of innovation is needed in a rapidly changing food industry. Global Resources Direct is not just adapting to the future of food manufacturing – the company is helping shape it. GRD’s expertise in IQF technology , combined with a commitment to quality, safety, and service, makes the company an ideal ally for your business. Premium frozen ingredients needed to succeed can be provided by GRD whether you’re a food manufacturer, distributor, or foodservice operator. Consider GRD your strategic partner if you’re ready to embrace the cool potential of IQF. Contact GRD today to learn more about how the company’s IQF solutions can help elevate your products and streamline your operations. The future of food is frozen – and GRD is where it starts. FAQs 1. What is IQF and how does it differ from traditional freezing methods? IQF stands for Individual Quick Freezing. A blast of cold air is used to rapidly freeze individual pieces of food, resulting in smaller ice crystals and better preservation of texture, flavor, and nutrients compared to slow freezing methods. 2. How does GRD ensure the quality and safety of its IQF ingredients? Produce is sourced from trusted growers and processed in a state-of-the-art IQF facility by GRD. Consistently high-quality, safe ingredients are ensured through strict quality control measures and adherence to food safety protocols. 3. What types of ingredients does GRD offer in IQF form? A wide range of IQF ingredients are offered by GRD, including fruits, vegetables, herbs, baked goods, pastas, grains, and egg products from your bulk ingredient supplier. 4. How can IQF ingredients benefit food manufacturers? Numerous benefits are offered by IQF ingredients, including longer shelf life, reduced waste, greater convenience and portion control, and superior retention of quality and nutritional value. Better products can be created more efficiently by manufacturers using IQF ingredients. 5. Why choose GRD as an IQF ingredient supplier? GRD’s position as a trusted leader in IQF technology is backed by a commitment to quality, safety, and innovation. The company’s extensive product line, expertise, and customer service make GRD an ideal strategic partner for food industry professionals. Read More From Techbullion Related Items: Frozen , quality Share Tweet Share Share Email Recommended for you 10 Benefits of Hiring the Best Catering Services in Lahore The Top Benefits of Investing in Professional Interior Painting for Your Business The Ultimate Guide to Vispring Mattresses: Discover Unmatched Comfort and Quality CommentsHUTCHMED (China) Limited ( LON:HCM – Get Free Report )’s share price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 279.53 ($3.52) and traded as low as GBX 227 ($2.86). HUTCHMED shares last traded at GBX 232 ($2.92), with a volume of 59,463 shares changing hands. HUTCHMED Price Performance The firm has a market capitalization of £1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5,800.00 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is GBX 273.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 279.53. About HUTCHMED ( Get Free Report ) HUTCHMED (China) Limited, together with its subsidiaries, discovers, develops, and commercializes targeted therapeutics and immunotherapies for cancer and immunological diseases in Hong Kong and internationally. The company develops Savolitinib for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), papillary renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and gastric cancer (GC); and Fruquintinib, an inhibitor for colorectal cancer (CRC), breast cancer, gastric cancer, microsatellite stable-CRC endometrial cancer (EMC), NSCLC, RCC, gastrointestinal, cervical, and solid tumors. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for HUTCHMED Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for HUTCHMED and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

MIAMI — Two wealthy Miami Beach brothers accused of raping a woman while she was pinned down in a high-rise condo were granted bail by a Miami-Dade circuit judge on Friday — but they’re not going to be released because they face separate federal sex-trafficking charges along with a third brother, who is already in U.S. custody. Twin brothers Oren and Alon Alexander, 37, obtained a $3 million bond and a $2 million bond, respectively, that are secured by their father’s home in Bal Harbour — bail packages that were approved by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Lody Jean on Friday. The twin brothers, who were in court Friday morning, entered not guilty pleas through their attorney. Oren was wearing a red jail jumpsuit, designated for high-profile inmates, and Alon was in a suicide-prevention vest. Both Oren and Alon Alexander will now be transferred to federal custody to face a separate sex-trafficking conspiracy case. The twins, along with their older brother, Tal Alexander — who have made fortunes as real estate brokers in Miami Beach and New York City — were arrested Wednesday in their Miami Beach homes by local police and FBI agents. The arrests are connected to the state attorney’s sexual battery cases in Miami and the federal sex-trafficking case in Manhattan. The arrests culminated parallel criminal investigations into allegations of rape and sex-trafficking against the once-superstar luxury real estate brokers and their older brother, Tal, 38, who is in federal custody in Miami awaiting a detention hearing on Friday afternoon. Federal prosecutors plan to ask a Miami magistrate judge to detain Tal, who is only charged in the FBI-led sex-trafficking investigation. On Thursday, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Mindy Glazer called the twin brothers’ alleged rape of a woman identified as “M.W.” at a Collins Avenue condo on New Year’s Eve in 2016 a “dangerous crime” that required her to hold them until their detention hearing on Friday. She also issued stay-away orders, ordering them to make no contact with M.W. The brothers’ Miami defense attorney, Joel Denaro, put together the bond package. Additionally, Glazer granted Oren Alexander two $25,000 bonds with house arrest on two other sexual battery charges while also issuing stay-away orders regarding two other alleged rape victims identified as “M.G.” and “S.M.” During the morning hearing on Thursday, Oren blurted out that his wife is nine months pregnant and that he wants to be with her when she delivers their baby, saying “I would like to be able go to the hospital if my wife’s in labor.” Whether he’s granted that opportunity will depend on Friday’s detention hearing. Oren’s arraignment on the three sexual battery charges is scheduled for Monday. Three alleged rapes in Miami Beach Locally, Oren Alexander has been charged with rape in three separate incidents. The first alleged incident was during a 2016 New Year’s Eve gathering at a Collins Avenue condo in Miami Beach. The victim said, according to the arrest report, Alon Alexander invited her to the condo saying they were having a party. The two knew each other from New York City. When she arrived, Alon introduced her to Oren and Ohad Fisherman, their friend. (The State Attorney’s Office had erroneously identified Fisherman as their cousin.) Alon led her into a bedroom and Oren and Fisherman followed. There, the arrest report says, she was pinned by Fisherman while the Alexander twins argued over who would assault her first. She claims she was raped by Oren, before Alon raped her as his brother watched. On Friday, Fisherman’s defense lawyer, Jeffrey Sloman, and Miami-Dade prosecutor Natalie Snyder reached an agreement to quash his arrest warrant so he can surrender to state authorities on Wednesday . Sloman told Judge Jean that Fisherman is returning on Tuesday to Miami from Japan, where he and his wife have been on their honeymoon. Lody approved the arrangement and scheduled Fisherman’s arraignment for Wednesday. In the state case, Oren Alexander is also accused of rape on Oct. 20, 2017. The victim said she met Oren and a friend for dinner, followed by an evening at a real-estate event in Hallandale Beach and later drinks at a bar. She had one drink before leaving with Oren and agreeing to go to the Collins Avenue condo for a drink. At the condo, the woman drank a glass of wine and put on a pair of virtual reality goggles. She alleges Oren undressed her without consent, moved her to his bedroom and sexually assaulted her while she had the glasses on. A few weeks later, the woman met with Oren to discuss her concerns, according to the report. When she wouldn’t allow him to kiss her, the woman he began to masturbate and ejaculated on her stomach. She said Oren texted her later with a threat to “ruin” her if she mentioned anything about the incident. Another woman claimed Oren raped her in 2021. The arrest form says the two met for dinner and then took a boat to his Miami Beach home. He then took her phone, saying no pictures permitted. Then, she said, a tour of his home led her to a sitting area near the bedroom. He got aggressive. As she tried to get away, the woman said Oren ripped her dress. When the woman realized the doors were locked remotely, she said Oren Alexander mounted and assaulted her, before ejaculating on her stomach. The friend of the Alexander brothers, Fisherman, is also facing a sexual battery charge accusing him of pinning down the first victim, M.W., while Alon and Oren Alexander allegedly raped her. Drugged, raped ‘dozens of victims,’ feds say Ultimately, the three Alexander brothers are expected to be transferred to Manhattan, where a three-count sex-trafficking indictment was filed in federal court for the Southern District of New York, the same court where rap mogul Diddy was recently indicted in a similar case. Federally, Oren, Alon and Tal Alexander have been charged with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking between 2010 and 2021 in Manhattan, Miami and elsewhere. Tal is also charged with sex trafficking two victims by force, fraud or coercion in July 2011 and September 2016 in Manhattan and elsewhere. Tal’s two brothers are charged along with him regarding the 2016 allegation. If convicted, the brothers face up to life in prison. The federal indictment unsealed in Manhattan Wednesday morning tells a story of serial sexual predators. The Alexander brothers “worked together and with others ... to repeatedly and violently drug, sexually assault, and rape dozens of victims,” reads the indictment. “At times, the Alexander brothers arranged for these sexual assaults well in advance, using the promise of luxury, experiences, travel and accommodations to lure and entice women to locations where they were then forcibly raped or sexually assaulted, sometimes by multiple men, including one or more of the Alexander brothers.” Since the early summer filing of the civil suits, an attorney representing two of the women told the Miami Herald an additional 40 women — including a dozen from the Miami area — have come forward with allegations against one or more of the brothers. Some of the alleged incidents happened decades ago, when the brothers attended Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School near Aventura. A woman spoke to the Herald earlier this year and recounted how she was about 15 and a student at Miami Country Day School when she managed to escape as the brothers were pinning her down with her arms and legs apart. The New York attorney representing some of the women told the Miami Herald in September that more lawsuits should be expected. Precipitous fall for real estate superstars Even before Wednesday’s arrests, the lawsuits and national media scrutiny had been costly for Oren and Tal Alexander, who stepped away from Official, the boutique New York City-based real estate firm they founded about three years ago. Alon continued to work for Kent Security, a private security firm built by his father Shlomi Alexander, which offers crisis management, guards and video technology. It’s been a precipitous fall for the trio. Tal and Oren’s high-end real estate deals in Miami, Aspen and Manhattan are legendary. They got a jump-start in the business from their father, who also dabbled in the sale of high-end luxury properties. ©2024 Miami Herald. Visit at miamiherald.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

MILAN — Shoppers laden with bags from Fendi, Loewe, Prada and other designer labels clog the narrow sidewalks of Milan's swankiest shopping street, bringing joy to the purveyors of high-end luxury goods this, and every, holiday season. There's even more to celebrate this year: a commercial real estate company crowned Via MonteNapoleone as the world's most expensive retail destination, displacing New York's Fifth Avenue. The latest version of American firm Cushman & Wakefield's annual global index, which ranks shopping areas based on the rent prices they command, is a sign of Via MonteNapoleone's desirability as an address for luxury ready-to-wear, jewelry and even pastry brands. A man walks past a shop Dec. 12 in Monte Napoleone street in Milan, Italy. The average rent on the Milan street surged to $2,047 per square foot, compared with $2,000 per square foot on an 11-block stretch of upper Fifth Avenue. Via MonteNapoleone's small size — less than a quarter-mile long — and walking distance to services and top cultural sites are among the street's key advantages, according to Guglielmo Miani, president of the MonteNapoleone District association. "Not everything can fit, which is a benefit," since the limited space makes the street even more exclusive and dynamic, said Miani, whose group also represents businesses on the intersecting side streets that together with Via MonteNapoleone form an area known as Milan's Fashion Quadrilateral. Women look a shop Dec. 12 in Monte Napoleone street in Milan, Italy. The biggest brands on the street make 50 million euros to 100 million euros in annual sales, Miani said, which goes a long way to paying the rent. Tiffany & Co. is preparing to take up residence on Via Montenapoleone, and longtime tenant Fendi is expanding. The MonteNapoleone District says 11 million people visited the area this year through November, but there's no way to say how many were big spenders vs. window shoppers. The average shopper on Via MonteNapoleone spent 2,500 euros per purchase between August and November — the highest average receipt in the world, according to the tax-free shopping firm Global Blue. The street is a magnet for holiday shoppers who arrive in Maseratis, Porsches and even Ferraris, the sports car's limited trunk space notwithstanding. A mannequin is seen Dec. 12 in a shop in Monte Napoleone street in Milan, Italy. Lights twinkle overhead, boutique windows feature mannequins engaged in warm scenes of holiday fun, and passersby snap photos of expertly decorated cakes in pastry shop displays. A visitor from China, Chen Xinghan, waited for a taxi with a half-dozen shopping bags lined up next to him on the sidewalk. He said he paid half the price for a luxury Fendi coat that he purchased in Milan than he would have at home. "I got a lot," Chen acknowledged. "It's a fantastic place, a good place for shopping." A man waits for a taxi Dec. 12 in Monte Napoleon street in Milan, Italy. A few store windows down, Franca Da Rold, who was visiting Milan from Belluno, an Italian city in the Dolomites mountain range, marveled at a chunky, yardslong knit scarf priced at 980 euros. "I could knit that in one hour, using 12-gauge knitting needles as thick as my fingers, and thick wool. Maximum two hours," Da Rold said, but acknowledged the brand appeal. Buildings are decorated Dec. 12 in Monte Napoleone street in Milan, Italy. Despite upper Fifth Avenue getting bumped to the No. 2 spot on the Cushman & Wakefield list, the organization that serves as the Manhattan street's guardian and chief promoter had praise for MonteNapoleone's achievement. "Milan's investment in its public realm is paying off, which is a win for their shoppers, businesses and city as a whole," said Madelyn Wils, interim president of the Fifth Avenue Association. She also expressed confidence that with new investments and a record year for sales on Fifth Avenue, "we'll be back on top in no time." The holiday season feels a little less jolly considering the amount of waste generated by gift-giving. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the amount of household garbage in the U.S. increases by 25% between Thanksgiving and New Year's. After the decorations come down, all that waste heads to landfills, producing a significant contributor to climate change: methane gas. "Greening" the holidays is essential, and one simple tip is to think more about how sustainable the materials are in your decorations, decor, and, of course, gifts. Instead of plastics, you could opt for items that can be reused, are made of renewable materials or natural fibers that boast a smaller environmental impact in both production and durability. Due to consumers' desires for more eco-friendly goods, sustainable materials are among the biggest trends in home decor. Fortunately, there are plenty of affordable—and earth-conscious—home goods that make perfect holiday gifts. Made Trade rounded up a list of sustainable home decor trends in 2025 that offer dozens of creative options for holiday gift-giving. Each trend includes examples of great gifts for the home and advice for ensuring items are sustainably produced or can help create a more eco-friendly space. In the depths of winter's gray days, it's a real gift to see a little green, which is why indoor gardening gifts are a wonderful idea. Not only are they eco-friendly and promote sustainability—the more food you can grow yourself, the less you have to buy—they also foster an appreciation of nature and bring the natural world indoors to enjoy. Sprouting kits and microgreens require minimal amounts of space and sunlight, but a sunny, south-facing window will permit a small herb garden or leafy greens for salads. If you're not sure what kind of light your recipient has access to, go with gifting indoor grow lamps along with the plants, or pick a hardy, low-water houseplant—some can act as natural air purifiers too. When buying gifts for the home, consider what materials the items are made from and how far away they come from—not only are natural materials like rattan, jute, palm leaves, clay, organic cotton and linen, and ceramics more sustainable, but if they are being used by a local craftsperson, gifters are also saving on fossil fuels for the transportation. Plus, you're helping the local economy by supporting local craftspeople, so it's a win-win. Natural fiber pillows, sheets, blankets, and even doormats offer comfort and consideration of the environment. The most sustainable and eco-friendly gift is one you already have, so get creative about reusing materials already in or around your home (raid the recycling bin, find nice pieces of wood outside, wash out and reuse glass jars) to fashion them into new, thoughtful goods. Similarly, think vintage and secondhand—what items can you give a second life to by passing them along to someone who will find new meaning in them? Some of the most thoughtful gifts are small heirlooms—pieces of jewelry or a beloved ceramic dish—passed along to the next generation that will appreciate them. Green technology offers ways to reduce our carbon footprint in everyday life, and smart thermostats, solar lights, smart sprinklers, and smart plugs all make great gifts, saving people money and conserving our valuable resources. For those looking into home renovations or updating decor, try a new light fixture paired with smart blubs, or a new window treatment with smart shades. Even something as simple as a rain barrel can reduce energy use—and while the technology for that isn't very sophisticated, it certainly is, like composting, "smart." Integrated outdoor living is the ultimate gift, allowing us to bring the natural world into our homes. However, doing so sustainably takes a little more effort than simply leaving the doors to the deck open all the time. First, find eco-friendly and sustainable outdoor furniture, perhaps thrifting it or buying it used and fixing it up for a one-of-a-kind gift. If you can't go secondhand, choose furniture made of sustainable materials such as reclaimed wood, recycled plastic (great for outdoor rugs), or bamboo. For smaller gifts, consider solar lights, a water feature that recycles water, a rain barrel, or even a set of handmade wind chimes made from seashells. Story editing by Carren Jao. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Clarese Moller. This story originally appeared on Made Trade and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio. Get the latest local business news delivered FREE to your inbox weekly.

Bonfire test confirms safety of the SAG LH2 liquid hydrogen tank system even in extreme conditions — Karin Exner-Wöhrer, CEO of SAG GroupVIENNA, AUSTRIA, December 12, 2024 / / — The liquid tank system for developed by SAG has reached a decisive milestone on the way to approval for road traffic: the successful completion of the so-called Bonfire test. This special fire safety test is a mandatory test to obtain type approval from the Federal Motor Transport Authority in order to ensure the safety of hydrogen tanks in road traffic. In the Bonfire test, the tank is confronted with extreme conditions. The tank, which must be filled with liquid hydrogen (-253°C), is exposed to a fire with a temperature of up to 1000°C. This fire must act on the test specimen over the entire projected tank surface. In the course of the test, a situation (e.g. accident) is simulated in which the vehicle is exposed to an intense fire. The aim is to check whether the tank can withstand the high temperatures and whether inadmissible overpressure can be avoided. This is done by controlled, safer blowing off of hydrogen via the safety devices installed on the tank. The SAG LH2 tank was subjected to this fire load for more than two hours, without the tank showing any structural damage and the internal pressure was only close to the level to activate the installed safety devices. Therefore, the vacuum insulation of the tank system was actively damaged (“broken”) by the experts carrying out the test in order to check the function of the safety valves. It was impressively demonstrated that the developing excess pressure could be dissipated absolutely safely and in a controlled manner via the safety devices. Thanks to the intensive cooperation with TÜV Rheinland in the preparation of the setting and in the execution of the test, it was possible to meet the requirements of the newly created, complex regulations. Based on Implementation Regulation (EU) Nr. 2021/535, the SAG LH2 tank system has been classified as safe in the event of an accident with fire Project Manager Cryogenic Storage Systems at , commented on the positive test result: “Subsequently, the safety valves discharged the stored hydrogen in a controlled manner. We are more than satisfied with the result and can take away important learnings for the further development of our tank system. The same applies to the test procedures, as we are currently taking on a pioneering role in carrying out these tests.” Conducting the Bonfire test was associated with considerable challenges. Since there are still no “mobile” LH2 refuelling facilities on the market, the LH2 filling was carried out together with SAG partners. The production of the prescribed test conditions was monitored by TÜV Rheinland and their correctness was also confirmed. Finally, the Bonfire test took place at a test site near Paderborn, Germany – the first of its kind to be carried out in connection with hydrogen liquid storage tank systems in accordance with the normative specifications, supervised by TÜV Rheinland and also metrologically verified. With the successful passing of the Bonfire test, the SAG LH2 tank system has gone through the last outstanding test for the granting of type approval in accordance with European standards and is therefore ready for use in road traffic. This success represents an important step in the development of safe hydrogen storage technologies for the mobility of the future. the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Bonfire test confirms safety of the SAG LH2 liquid hydrogen tank system even in extreme conditions, BBC – Hydrogen plant plans on hold after safety concerns Plans to build a controversial hydrogen energy facility have been put on hold after the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) raised concerns. Japanese firm... Australia – The Hyundai Nexo has been recalled due to a fault which could cause the hydrogen-powered vehicle to catch fire Hyundai Australia has recalled 35 examples of the hydrogen-powered Nexo due to a fault... Hydrogen adoption: analysis for safety and resilience – Ricardo As we move to adopt alternative and sustainable fuels, safety is paramount. Hydrogen’s unique properties contribute to its safety challenges...EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Indianapolis quarterback Anthony Richardson has been ruled out for the Colts' big game at the New York Giants on Sunday. Richardson missed practice on Thursday and Friday because of back and foot injuries. He was listed as questionable before he was downgraded to out on Saturday. Indianapolis (7-8) has a slim chance of making the playoffs. The Colts need to win out and get some help. Richardson's absence likely means Joe Flacco will start against New York. Flacco, a New Jersey native who turns 40 on Jan. 16, has passed for 1,167 yards and nine touchdowns in six games this season, including four starts. He also has thrown five interceptions. The 22-year-old Richardson was selected by Indianapolis with the No. 4 pick in the 2023 draft. He has passed for 1,814 yards and eight touchdowns with 12 interceptions this year. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

India Emerges as Global Growth Engine: PM Modi's Vision Unveiled in Kuwait

A SECOND top Nat has been caught up in another freebies row — after he was chauffeured to the Scottish Open in a government limo. Tories blasted Dr Alasdair Allan’s trip to watch home golfing hero Robert MacIntyre’s victory, insisting it had nothing to do with his role as Climate Change Minister. 3 It comes weeks after Health Secretary Neil Gray was forced to explain his limo trips Credit: Alamy 3 The minister attended the event where Scot Robert MacIntyre triumphed Credit: Getty Our revelation comes weeks after Health Secretary Neil Gray faced calls to explain trips to Aberdeen matches in ministerial motors . Scots Tories’ deputy leader Rachael Hamilton hit out: “It looks like Neil Gray’s got company when it comes to taking the public for a ride. “Alasdair Allan must explain why he thought he could charge taxpayers for a jolly which is completely outwith his job description. “If he wanted to watch the world’s leading golfers, he should have paid for it out of his own pocket.” Read More Scpttish Politics LAW VOW SNP government will 'consider' creating new offence for non-fatal strangulation CON THE BUS SNP ministers 'quietly ditch' bus pledge as funding cut by 98 per cent We can reveal papers show the MSP was driven to the Renaissance Club in North Berwick, East Lothian, on July 14 — the last day of the £7million PGA Tour showdown. His trip was listed as an official ministerial visit to a “major event”. But no press releases were issued about the jaunt to the tournament, won by MacIntyre, from Oban, Argyll . There was also no official justification for the visit or how it fell under his remit. Most read in The Scottish Sun LOCKED DOWN Police & paramedics swarm busy Glasgow retail park as they seal off areaa lew's new love Lewis Capaldi grows close to influencer as they party with Noel Gallagher STRIP SEARCH Gers ‘to ditch Castore for major kit brand' next season but there’s a catch CRYSTAL BALL Celtic vs Rangers score predictions as SunSport writers have their say And questions were asked about the lack of official pictures that are typically issued of ministers at high-profile outings. It has also emerged Sports Minister Maree Todd enjoyed a two-night trip to Wimbledon at taxpayers’ expense in July, with a hotel costing £213 and a return train ticket an extra £194. EXPLAINED: Scottish Budget 2024, what do the SNP's spending plans mean for you? We told last month how Dons-supporting Mr Gray admitted he’d appeared to act “more as a fan and less as a minister” after taking official limos to nine football games. Minutes and guest lists from the trips were released earlier this week. But there were no official notes for several of the matches. Mr Gray was also blasted for going to the premiere of Saoirse Ronan movie The Outrun in Edinburgh . Last night the Scottish Government said Dr Allan had been invited by Scottish Open chiefs who saw “sustainability” as a “key consideration”. A spokesman added: “He met with stakeholders, including the GEO Foundation — an international not-for-profit organisation that supports and rewards sustainability action. 3 Dr Alasdair Allan took a limo trip to watch home golf hero Robert MacIntyre at the Scottish Open Credit: Alamy “He also toured the site to learn more about sustainability initiatives. Read more on the Scottish Sun BATTY WEATHER Record-breaking snow & temps on the way for Scotland as expert issues warning GER KIDDING Tottenham fans blast ex-Spurs star as he's spotted wildly celebrating Gers goal Ministers attending events in a ministerial capacity are entitled to use government transport . All costs are in accordance with travel and subsistence policies.”LANCASTER, Pa. , Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Burnham Holdings, Inc. (OTC-Pink: BURCA) ("BHI", the "Company", "we" or "our") today announced common and preferred stock dividends. At its meeting on December 12 , 2024, Burnham Holdings, Inc.'s Board of Directors declared a quarterly common stock dividend of $0.23 per share and a semi-annual preferred stock dividend of $1.50 per share, both payable December 30, 2024 , with a record date of December 19, 2024 . Burnham Holdings, Inc.'s Annual Meeting will be held virtually via a secure website meeting platform on Monday, April 28, 2025 , beginning at 11:30 a.m. eastern. Also today, William F. Dodge, II announced his retirement from the Company's Board of Directors effective immediately. Mr. Dodge had been a director of BHI since 1999 and was one of the longest-serving directors in our history. We thank Bill for his many years of dedicated service on the Board of Directors and wish him well in his retirement. His insights and leadership will be missed. About Burnham Holdings, Inc. : BHI is the parent company of multiple subsidiaries that are leading domestic manufacturers of boilers, furnaces and related HVAC products and accessories for residential, commercial, and industrial applications. BHI is listed on the OTC Exchange under the ticker symbol "BURCA". For more information, please visit www.burnhamholdings.com . SOURCE Burnham Holdings, Inc.

Published 5:12 pm Thursday, November 21, 2024 By Data Skrive The Wisconsin Badgers and the UCF Knights take the court for one of eight games on the college basketball slate on Friday that include a ranked team. For picks against the spread, check out the rest of this article below. Place your bets on any men’s college basketball matchup at BetMGM. Sign up today using our link. Bet on the UCF-Wisconsin spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Florida-Southern Illinois spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Kentucky-Jackson State spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Creighton-Nebraska spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Houston-Hofstra spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Arkansas-Little Rock spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Arizona-Duke spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Bet on the Hawaii-North Carolina spread—or any other NCAA men’s basketball matchup—with BetMGM ! Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER .LAS VEGAS -- The Milwaukee Bucks are making a return trip to the NBA Cup semifinals after falling short in Sin City last season. This time around, they'll have the responsibility of stopping one of the game's great entertainers in Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks. Young rolled a pair of imaginary dice over the New York Knicks' midcourt logo in the closing moments of the Hawks' 108-100 win in the quarterfinals on Tuesday, a nod to the Hawks' trip to Vegas. It was yet another example of Young's showmanship, something the Knicks have seen firsthand over the years. The Bucks also got to experience a bit of Young's big-game prowess in the 2021 Eastern Conference finals, but Young suffered an ankle injury in Game 3 of that series and wasn't the same the rest of the way. If "Ice Trae" has it his way, the Bucks will be the latest victim of his prime-time heroics on Saturday night. Even if he doesn't like to linger on the memories of that series. "I don't let past things make me mad (and I don't) hold a grudge on those things," the 26-year-old Young said. "Yeah, I'm young. I'm not super young anymore, where I like, let those things really affect me. "I remember it like it was yesterday. It definitely hurts, but I mean, this is a new team. I'm part of a new team. They're a different team. So I can't let my past affect my mental and my focus on right now, because it's a totally different team and totally different place." Young is averaging 21 points per game to go along with 12.2 assists, numbers that have only been equaled by Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas over the course of an entire NBA season. He's gotten a fair bit of help too, most notably in the form of 19.8 points and a team-high 10.1 rebounds per game from fourth-year forward Jalen Johnson. The Hawks earned the No. 3 seed in NBA Cup knockout play after going 3-1 in the East Group C stage. Atlanta's among the hottest teams in the league at the moment, having won seven of its last eight games overall. The Bucks, on the other hand, are the only team of the four remaining that made it to the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas last season. They had a short trip, falling 128-119 to the Pacers, but the hope is that last year's experience better prepared them for all of the outside hoopla that comes with this stage. At the very least, they have a much better understanding of what winning the NBA Cup would entail. "I think last year, most people didn't even understand what was going on until they got to the final stages," Bucks star Damian Lillard said. "When we got to the game against New York last year, where the winner got to go to Vegas, we started to have a better understanding of what was on the line. "Coming into this season, I think everybody understood better. Everybody cared more, not just because it's an opportunity to win money. Even though it's not the ultimate goal, I think it gives you an edge. We want to be the last team standing in it. We want to win the money. We want to continue going in the right direction as a team." The Bucks entered Tuesday's quarterfinal as the East's top seed in NBA Cup play, going 4-0 in East Group B play despite a turbulent 2-8 start to the season. They've won nine of their last 11 games and eclipsed .500 for the season by beating the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday and the Orlando Magic on Tuesday. Giannis Antetokounmpo sits atop the NBA scoring leaders as of Friday afternoon, averaging 32.7 points and a team-high 11.4 rebounds per game. Lillard has also played at an All-Star level, averaging 25.8 points per game in addition to 7.6 assists. Bobby Portis (13.2 ppg) and Brook Lopez (11 ppg) are the only other Bucks averaging double figures. --Will Despart, Field Level MediaThis ASX 200 uranium stock is 'incredibly cheap'

 

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Saturday's TransactionsUNITY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — The team looking for a missing Pennsylvania woman believed to have fallen into a sinkhole has determined that an abandoned coal mine is too unstable for people to safely search underground, authorities said Wednesday while still expressing hope Elizabeth Pollard will be found alive. Rescue workers continue to search for Elizabeth Pollard, who is believed to have disappeared in a sinkhole while looking for her cat, Wednesday in Marguerite, Pa. Gene J. Puskar, Associated Press Emergency crews and others have been trying to find Pollard, 64, for two days. Her relatives reported her missing early Tuesday and her vehicle with her unharmed 5-year-old granddaughter inside was found about two hours later, near what is thought to be a freshly opened sinkhole above the long closed, crumbling mine. Authorities said in a noon update that the roof of the mine collapsed in several places and is not stable. The sinkhole is in the village of Marguerite, about 40 miles east of Pittsburgh. “We did get, you know, where we wanted, where we thought that she was at. We’ve been to that spot," said Pleasant Unity Fire Chief John Bacha, the incident's operations officer. “What happened at that point, I don’t know, maybe the slurry of mud pushed her one direction. There were several different seams of that mine, shafts that all came together where this happened at.” People are also reading... Trooper Cliff Greenfield said crews were still actively searching for Pollard. “We are hopeful that she’s found alive,” Greenfield said. Searchers were using electronic devices and cameras as surface digging continued with the use of heavy equipment, Bacha said. Search dogs may also be used. Rescue workers search through the night in a sinkhole for Elizabeth Pollard, who disappeared while looking for her cat, Tuesday in Marguerite, Pa. Gene J. Puskar, Associated Press On Wednesday afternoon, machinery was removing material from the area around the hole while police and other government vehicles blocked a clear view of the scene. Sinkholes occur in the area because of subsidence from coal mining activity. Rescuers had been using water to break down and remove clay and dirt from the mine, which has been closed since the 1950s, but that increased the risk “for potential other mine subsidence to take place," Pennsylvania State Police spokesperson Trooper Steve Limani said. Crews lowered a pole camera with a sensitive listening device into the hole, but it detected nothing. Another camera lowered into the hole showed what could be a shoe about 30 feet below the surface, Limani said. Searchers have also deployed drones and thermal imaging equipment, to no avail. Marguerite Fire Chief Scot Graham, the incident commander, said access to the immediate area surrounding the hole was being tightly controlled and monitored, with rescuers attached by harness. The top of a sinkhole is seen Tuesday in the village of Marguerite, Pa., where rescuers searched for a woman who disappeared. Pennsylvania State Police “We cannot judge as to what’s going on underneath us. Again, you had a small hole on top but as soon as you stuck a camera down through to look, you had this big void,” Graham said. “And it was all different depths. The process is long, is tedious. We have to make sure that we are keeping safety in the forefront as well as the rescue effort.” Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts Bacha said they were “hoping that there’s a void that she could still be in.” Pollard's family called police at about 1 a.m. Tuesday to say she had not been seen since going out at about 5 p.m. Monday to search for Pepper, her cat. The temperature dropped well below freezing that night. Her son, Axel Hayes, said Pollard is a happy woman who likes going out to have fun. She and her husband adopted Hayes and his twin brother when they were infants. Hayes called Pollard “a great person overall, a great mother” who “never really did anybody wrong.” He said at one point Pollard had about 10 cats. “Every cat that she’s ever come in contact with, she has a close bond with them,” Hayes said. His mother worked for many years at Walmart but recently was not employed, he said. “I’m just hoping right now that she’s still with us and she’s able to come back to us,” he said. Police said they found Pollard's car parked behind Monday's Union Restaurant in Marguerite, about 20 feet from the sinkhole. Hunters and restaurant workers in the area said they had not noticed the manhole-size opening in the hours before Pollard disappeared, leading rescuers to speculate that the sinkhole was new. “It almost feels like it opened up with her standing on top of it,” Limani said. Searchers accessed the mine late Tuesday afternoon and dug a separate entrance out of concern that the ground around the sinkhole opening was not stable. “Let’s be honest, we need to get a little bit lucky, right?” Limani said Wednesday. “We need a little bit of luck on our side. We need a little bit of God’s good blessing on our side.” Pollard lives in a small neighborhood across the street from where her car and granddaughter were located, Limani said. The young girl “nodded off in the car and woke up. Grandma never came back," Limani said. The child stayed in the car until two troopers rescued her. It's not clear what happened to Pepper. From field to fork: how America's farming revolution affects your plate and wallet From field to fork: how America's farming revolution affects your plate and wallet In an era of rapid technological advancement and environmental change, American agriculture is undergoing a revolution that reaches far beyond the farm gate. From the food on consumer plates to the economic health of rural communities, the transformation of U.S. farming practices is reshaping the nation's landscape in ways both visible and hidden. LandTrust explores how these changes impact everyone, whether they live in the heartland or the heart of the city.The Changing Face of American FarmsThe image of the small family farm, while still a reality for many, is increasingly giving way to larger, more technologically advanced operations. According to the USDA, the number of farms in the U.S. has fallen from 6.8 million in 1935 to about 2 million today, with the average farm size growing from 155 acres to 444 acres. This shift has profound implications for rural communities and the food system as a whole.Despite these changes, diversity in farming practices is on the rise. A landmark study published in Science, involving data from over 2,000 farms across 11 countries, found that diversifying farmland simultaneously delivers environmental and social benefits. This challenges the longstanding idea that practices boosting biodiversity must come at a cost to yields and food security.Technology Revolution on the FarmThe adoption of precision agriculture technologies is transforming how farmers manage their land and resources. GPS-guided tractors, drone surveillance, and AI-powered crop management systems are becoming commonplace on many farms. These technologies allow farmers to apply water, fertilizers, and pesticides with pinpoint accuracy, reducing waste and environmental impact while improving yields.However, the digital divide remains a challenge. More than 22% of rural communities lack reliable broadband internet access, hindering the widespread implementation of AI and other advanced technologies in agriculture.The Economic Tightrope: Challenges Facing Modern FarmersWhile technology offers new opportunities, farmers are also facing significant economic challenges. The USDA's 2024 farm income forecast projects a 4.4% decline in net farm income from 2023, following a sharp 19.5% drop from 2022 to 2023. This financial pressure is compounded by rising production costs and market volatility.Climate variability adds another layer of complexity. Extreme weather events, changing precipitation patterns, and shifting growing seasons are forcing farmers to adapt quickly. These factors could reduce agricultural productivity by up to 25% over the coming decades without significant adaptation measures. But adapting requires additional financial resources, further straining farm profitability. Diversification: A Lifeline for American FarmsIn the face of these challenges, many farmers are turning to diversification as a strategy for resilience and profitability. The Science study mentioned earlier found that farms integrating several diversification methods supported more biodiversity while seeing simultaneous increases in human well-being and food security.Agritourism is one popular diversification strategy. In 2022, 28,600 U.S. farms reported agritourism income, averaging gross revenue of $44,000 from these activities. Activities like farm tours, pick-your-own operations, and seasonal festivals not only provide additional income but also foster a deeper connection between consumers and agriculture.From Farm to Table: The Consumer ConnectionThe changing face of agriculture is directly impacting consumers. The rise of farm-to-table and local food movements reflects a growing interest in where our food comes from and how it's produced. If every U.S. household spent just $10 per week on locally grown food, it would generate billions of dollars for local economies.However, the larger challenges in agriculture can also lead to price fluctuations at the grocery store. The USDA's Economic Research Service projects that food-at-home prices will increase between 1.2% and 2.2% in 2024.The Future of Farming: Opportunities and InnovationsLooking ahead, several innovations are poised to reshape agriculture:Sustainable farming practices: Cover cropping, no-till farming, and precision agriculture are gaining traction. These practices can reduce soil erosion by up to 90% compared to conventional tillage.Genetic engineering: CRISPR and other gene-editing technologies offer the potential to develop crops with enhanced nutritional profiles and resistance to pests and diseases.Alternative protein sources: The market for plant-based and lab-grown meat alternatives is projected to reach $30 billion by 2030.Conclusion: A Call to ActionThe transformation of American agriculture affects everyone, from the food we eat to the health of our environment and rural communities. Consumers have the power to support sustainable and diverse farming practices through our purchasing decisions. As citizens, they can advocate for policies that support farmers in adopting innovative and sustainable practices.The challenges facing agriculture are complex, but they also present opportunities for innovation and positive change. By understanding and engaging with these issues, everyone can play a part in shaping a more resilient, sustainable, and equitable food system for the future.This story was produced by LandTrust and reviewed and distributed by Stacker. LandTrust The Changing Face of American Farms Technology Revolution on the Farm The Economic Tightrope: Challenges Facing Modern Farmers Diversification: A Lifeline for American Farms From Farm to Table: The Consumer Connection The Future of Farming: Opportunities and Innovations Conclusion: A Call to Action Be the first to knowTrump threatens to try to take back the Panama Canal. Panama's president balks at the suggestion

Risk-tolerant investors hunting for growth often gravitate toward technology stocks -- and for good reason. These companies are driving some of the world's top social, economic, and cultural changes, after all. That's why so many of these tickers experience great gains (and a select few see outright massive ones). Indeed, the right tech stock can make you a millionaire with just a relatively small investment. Is SoundHound AI ( SOUN -1.16% ) such a millionaire-making name? Maybe. The stock's 300% price spike since late October certainly suggests at least some investors see big things in its foreseeable future. Before you take the same plunge in anticipation of becoming a millionaire within the next 10 years, however, there are a few things you'll want to consider. SoundHound's (very) cool interactive voice technology SoundHound is an artificial intelligence (AI) technology company. Its specialty is voice-based solutions, like turning a spoken drive-thru order into a written prep list for the fast-food restaurant staff, or hands-free activation (or deactivation) of an automobile's features. By leveraging the full potential of modern large language model (or LLM) AI, it can even support assistance-minded conversations with users of its tech. And customers are paying for access to its solutions. Restaurant management software provider Toast has integrated SoundHound's voice ordering technology into its offerings, while hamburger chain White Castle has directly secured access to it as a means of streamlining its drive-thrus. Carmaker Stellantis -- parent to Jeep, Dodge, Chrysler, Fiat, and others -- has utilized SoundHound's in-car solutions in some of its more driver-interactive vehicles. Streaming music platform Pandora (owned by SiriusXM ) can now be managed by subscribers' voices thanks to SoundHound AI. All told, this company monetized its technology to the tune of $25 million during the quarter ending in September, up 89% year over year. There's more growth on the horizon, too. Market research outfit Straits Research believes the global speech recognition industry is poised to grow at an annualized pace of 17% through 2032, jibing with outlooks from Technavio as well as Polaris Market Research. This business being its sole focus, SoundHound AI is seemingly well-positioned to capture at least its fair share of this growth. This possibility is the top reason at least a small handful of investors are piling in, perhaps in anticipation of riding the stock's coattails to reach the millionaire mark in the relatively near future. If you're thinking of doing the same, though, know that there's a fairly low likelihood of this stock actually making you a millionaire by 2035 no matter how much capital you commit to it today. In fact, there's arguably more risk than reward. Overvalued for any time frame There's no denying this company has significantly raised the bar on the voice-based artificial intelligence front. It's successfully monetizing its technology, too. Indeed, as Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives recently noted, "SoundHound represents an underappreciated pure-play AI company" that's likely to report accelerated growth and new market prospects over the course of 2025. There are legitimate concerns about its longer-term growth prospects, however. Chief among them is the fact that, while impressive, there's nothing particularly unique about its technology . Take OpenAI's ChatGPT and Alphabet Google's Gemini as examples. Both are capable of offering text-based AI-generated conversations, and Google has already developed a serviceable speech-to-text tool for some of its offerings. Microsoft 's AI assistant, Copilot, can also be voice-based. Tweaking any of these solutions into a tool that's akin to SoundHound AI's wouldn't be a great leap. It's just that these companies have thus far opted not to. Microsoft, Google, and ChatGPT owner OpenAI all certainly enjoy access to deeper developmental pockets though. If and when any of them attempt to step onto SoundHound's turf, they could easily topple the smaller outfit. This fragility makes the second concern surrounding this stock all the more troubling. That's the stock's valuation. SoundHound AI shares are incredibly expensive. Never even mind the company's current lack of profits. It's obviously difficult to value any company operating in the red. You own a stock based on where the organization is going rather than where it is, but the future isn't always clear. Investors simply believe SoundHound will be fiscally viable at some point in time even with no real clarity as to when that might be. And maybe it will eventually swing to a profit. Even by the most forgiving valuation standards, though, at roughly 100 times its trailing-12-month revenue, this stock's still wildly expensive. For the sake of comparison, the S&P 500 's current price-to-sales ratio is in the ballpark of 3.1. Said in more practical terms, SoundHound AI's top line could grow more than 30-fold from here and shares would still be priced in line with its peers where it stands right now. The stock's really not any more promising in the near term, either. Analysts' current consensus price target of $14.36 is 40% below SoundHound shares' present price. Sure, target prices can and do rise over time. It could be a long time before the analyst community's consensus catches up with the stock's current level, however, if it ever does. The company continues to issue new stock to raise funds in the meantime, diluting existing shareholders. It's not clear when this practice is set to slow down. Not enough reward to justify the risk, but... Never say never. SoundHound could make you a millionaire by 2035. It might acquire or develop a new marketable tech with a wider defensive moat than its voice-based AI currently has, for instance. From an odds-making perspective though, that's a very low-likelihood prospect. There are just too many short-term headwinds already blowing, and too many long-term headwinds waiting in the wings. Don't sweat it too much if you're looking for millionaire-making stocks, however. They're out there. It's just that SoundHound AI isn't one of them. Check out these tickers if you can stomach the risk required of promising millionaire-making prospects.Russia says oil spill 'critical' as Crimea declares emergencyTsuruha Holdings Inc. ( OTCMKTS:TSUSF – Get Free Report ) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 60,600 shares, an increase of 72.6% from the November 30th total of 35,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 606.0 days. Tsuruha Stock Performance Shares of OTCMKTS TSUSF opened at $55.00 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.07. Tsuruha has a 12-month low of $55.00 and a 12-month high of $60.71. About Tsuruha ( Get Free Report ) Read More Receive News & Ratings for Tsuruha Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Tsuruha and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

After 125 years or so of being the most collectively Joe College nation on Earth, many Americans have turned sour on the idea that a higher education — or at least the four years we have traditionally set aside for young adults to get a bachelor’s degree — is key to an informed, successful life. Not me. But the varsity blues are otherwise rampant. Perhaps our culture had gone a little bit too all-in on the tradition, and this is just a course correction. I have noted before in this space that in my observations of car rear windshields in dozens of countries around the world, we are the only one that is positively bonkers in identifying the schools in which we, or our children, have matriculated, through decals and bumper stickers. The Citroens of Paris and the Jaguars of London are not adorned with signifiers bragging “Sorbonne” or “Oxford.” I don’t quite know if it’s simple humility or a lack of school spirit, but the fact is their license-plate holders do not announce, as does mine, “Go Bears!,” or the equivalent, to the driver behind them at the stop light. I do realize I was lucky in having been accepted into the University of California system during its golden age of taxpayer support. I got to study at the greatest public university in the world for a tuition that never varied from its annual $637.50 price tag from September 1973 through June 1977. That, the $200 monthly check my (sainted) mother sent me and the $15 a week I made for writing for the student newspaper covered everything: rent, books, meals, beer, whatnot. Undergraduate bliss. Or, if not always entirely that — there were inevitable heartbreaks, and the vague existential dread of adult life around the corner, in which you’d somehow have to make ends meet — four formative transitional years in between living under your parents’ roof and having to fend entirely on your own. If I was lucky, at least I knew that I was, and never took it for granted. I wasn’t smart enough to be a slacker. I never missed a single class, freshman through senior years. Of course, the information imparted wasn’t always at the hands of the professors. On a university campus, you have your beliefs challenged, or at least you ought to. For instance, as a perhaps naive believer in the essentially correct nature of American foreign policy, the Vietnam debacle aside, I had never for a minute as a high school student been exposed to any notion that Israel was anything but entirely righteous and correct in its dealings with its Arab neighbors. But walking through Sproul Plaza one day, with its ubiquitous “tablers” espousing various political causes, from Young Communists through Young Republicans, I stopped to read some pamphleteering giving the Palestinian side. You mean land was taken from families with an ancient claim to it without proper compensation? The world was more complicated than one had been led to believe. Related Articles Opinion Columnists | Matt Fleming: Some books I enjoyed reading in 2024 Opinion Columnists | Thomas Elias: Expect Newsom to start his much anticipated run for president Opinion Columnists | Wishing for Santa-like efficiency in the USA Opinion Columnists | Jon Coupal: Santa Jarvis’s naughty and nice list Opinion Columnists | California is battling the future to protect performers And now, as is only fitting, it’s time to play the role of old grouch. Students arrive on campus these days more set in their views, less open to conversion. You hang with the like-minded and issue trigger warnings to those who would challenge you. The Palestine-Israel situation is a sadly perfect example of that. And so, as someone who still spends a lot of time on college campuses, I was glad to read recently of efforts by college administrators to get young people to open up. In a story headlined “To Dial Down Campus Tensions, Colleges Teach the Art of Conversation,” New York Times reporter Anemona Hartocollis writes: “On a warm November day, a group of Columbia University professors set up ‘listening tables’ near the center of campus and hailed students rushing to class, inviting them to stop and talk.” They smartly bring pizza as an enticement, so some things never change. But it’s often the dire wolf of Gaza that still howls loudest at the tables. A woman in a kaffiyeh in one conversation talked about “this genocide.” “I wouldn’t call it a genocide,” said Scott Barry Kaufman, a psych prof moderating the group. “Do you hate me because I disagree with you?” “No, she did not hate him — ‘for that reason,’ she said,” Hartocollis reports. “Ouch,” Dr. Kaufman replied. Hey, at least they’re talking. Larry Wilson is on the Southern California News Group editorial board. lwilson@scng.com.

PHOENIX — Donald Trump suggested Sunday that his new administration could try to regain control of the Panama Canal that the United States “foolishly” ceded to its Central American ally, contending that shippers are charged “ridiculous” fees to pass through the vital transportation channel linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. President-elect Donald Trump speaks at AmericaFest on Sunday in Phoenix. Panama's conservative president José Raúl Mulino, who was elected in April on a pro-business platform, roundly rejected that notion as an affront to his country's sovereignty. The Republican president-elect's comment came during his first major rally since winning the White House on Nov. 5. He also used his comments to bask in his return to power as a large audience of conservatives cheered along. It was a display of party unity at odds with a just-concluded budget fight on Capitol Hill where some GOP lawmakers openly defied their leader's demands. Addressing supporters at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest in Arizona, Trump pledged that his “dream team Cabinet” would deliver a booming economy, seal U.S. borders and quickly settle wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. “I can proudly proclaim that the Golden Age of America is upon us,” Trump said. “There’s a spirit that we have now that we didn’t have just a short while ago.” His appearance capped a four-day pep rally that drew more than 20,000 activists and projected an image of Republican cohesion despite the past week's turbulence in Washington with Trump pulling strings from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as Congress worked to avoid a government shutdown heading into the Christmas holiday. House Republicans spiked a bipartisan deal after Trump and Elon Musk, his billionaire ally, expressed their opposition on social media. Budget hawks flouted Trump's request to raise the nation’s debt ceiling, which would have spared some new rounds of the same fight after he takes office Jan. 20, 2025, with Republicans holding narrow control of the House and Senate. The final agreement did not address the issue and there was no shutdown. Trump, in his remarks in Phoenix, did not mention the congressional drama, though he did reference Musk's growing power. To suggestions that "President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon,” Trump made clear, “No, no. That’s not happening.” “He’s not gonna be president,” Trump said. The president-elect opened the speech by saying that "we want to try to bring everybody together. We’re going to try. We’re going to really give it a shot." Then he suggested Democrats have “lost their confidence” and are “befuddled” after the election but eventually will ”come over to our side because we want to have them.” A cargo ship traverses the Agua Clara Locks of the Panama Canal on Sept. 2 in Colon, Panama. Atop a list of grievances — some old, some new — was the Panama Canal. “We’re being ripped off at the Panama Canal,” he said, bemoaning that his country ”foolishly gave it away.” The United States built the Panama Canal in the early 1900s, as it looked for ways to facilitate the transit of commercial and military vessels between its coasts. Washington relinquished control of the waterway to Panama on Dec. 31, 1999, under a treaty signed in 1977 under President Jimmy Carter. The canal depends on reservoirs to operate its locks and was heavily affected by 2023 Central American droughts that forced it to substantially reduce the number of daily slots for crossing ships. With fewer ships using the canal each day, administrators also increased the fees that are charged all shippers for reserving a slot. With weather returning to normal in the later months of this year, transit on the canal has normalized. But price increases are still expected for next year. Mulino, Panama's president, has been described as a conservative populist who aligns with Trump on many issues. Panama is a strong U.S. ally and the canal is crucial for its economy, generating about one-fifth of that government’s annual revenue. Still, Trump said, that, once his second term is underway, "If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States of America, in full, quickly and without question.” “I’m not going to stand for it," Trump said. "So to the officials of Panama, please be guided accordingly.” He did not explain how that would be possible. A short time after Trump's speech, Mulino released a video declaring that “every square meter of the canal belongs to Panama and will continue to belong” to his country. Without mentioning Trump by name, Mulino addressed the president-elect's complaints over rising fees for ships crossing the canal, saying that they are set by experts who take into account operational costs, and supply and demand factors. “The tariffs are not set on a whim” Mulino said. He noted that Panama has expanded the canal over the years to increase ship traffic “on its own initiative,” and added that shipping fee increases help pay for improvements. “Panamanians may have different views on many issues” Mulino said. “But when it comes to our canal, and our sovereignty, we will all unite under our Panamanian flag.” The canal aside, Trump’s appearance at Turning Point’s annual gathering affirmed the growing influence the group and its founder, Charlie Kirk, have had in the conservative movement. Kirk’s organization hired thousands of field organizers across presidential battlegrounds, helping Trump make key gains among infrequent voters and other groups of people that have trended more Democratic in recent decades, including younger voters, Black men and Latino men. ”You had Turning Point’s grassroots armies,” Trump said. “It’s not my victory, it’s your victory.” Earlier Sunday, Trump said that Stephen Miran, who worked at the Treasury Department in Trump's first term, was his choice to lead the Council of Economic Advisers. Among President-elect Donald Trump's picks are Susie Wiles for chief of staff, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, former Democratic House member Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration's top diplomat. Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump's running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement. The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man" during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump's plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations. Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show. Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year. Trump tapped Pam Bondi, 59, to be attorney general after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration. She was Florida's first female attorney general, serving between 2011 and 2019. She also was on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Considered a loyalist, she served as part of a Trump-allied outside group that helped lay the groundwork for his future administration called the America First Policy Institute. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. A fierce defender of Trump, she also frequently appears on Fox News and has been a critic of the criminal cases against him. Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda. Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic. She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports. The governor of North Dakota, who was once little-known outside his state, Burgum is a former Republican presidential primary contender who endorsed Trump, and spent months traveling to drum up support for him, after dropping out of the race. Burgum was a serious contender to be Trump’s vice presidential choice this summer. The two-term governor was seen as a possible pick because of his executive experience and business savvy. Burgum also has close ties to deep-pocketed energy industry CEOs. Trump made the announcement about Burgum joining his incoming administration while addressing a gala at his Mar-a-Lago club, and said a formal statement would be coming the following day. In comments to reporters before Trump took the stage, Burgum said that, in recent years, the power grid is deteriorating in many parts of the country, which he said could raise national security concerns but also drive up prices enough to increase inflation. “There's just a sense of urgency, and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration,” Burgum said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as a Democrat, than as an independent, and then endorsed Trump . He's the son of Democratic icon Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated during his own presidential campaign. The nomination of Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services alarmed people who are concerned about his record of spreading unfounded fears about vaccines . For example, he has long advanced the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Scott Bessent, 62, is a former George Soros money manager and an advocate for deficit reduction. He's the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. “This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then. Scott Turner is a former NFL player and White House aide. He ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term in office. Trump, in a statement, credited Turner, the highest-ranking Black person he’s yet selected for his administration, with “helping to lead an Unprecedented Effort that Transformed our Country’s most distressed communities.” Sean Duffy is a former House member from Wisconsin who was one of Trump's most visible defenders on cable news. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, sitting on the Financial Services Committee and chairing the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019 for a TV career and has been the host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Before entering politics, Duffy was a reality TV star on MTV, where he met his wife, “Fox and Friends Weekend” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy. They have nine children. A campaign donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Write is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking — a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. Wright also has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change. He said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.” The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. Wright also won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm. Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. President-elect Donald Trump tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump promised to dismantle. McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she expressed support for charter schools and school choice. She served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Brooke Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. She previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Trump chose Howard Lutnick, head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald and a cryptocurrency enthusiast, as his nominee for commerce secretary, a position in which he'd have a key role in carrying out Trump's plans to raise and enforce tariffs. Trump made the announcement Tuesday on his social media platform, Truth Social. Lutnick is a co-chair of Trump’s transition team, along with Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive who previously led Trump’s Small Business Administration. Both are tasked with putting forward candidates for key roles in the next administration. The nomination would put Lutnick in charge of a sprawling Cabinet agency that is involved in funding new computer chip factories, imposing trade restrictions, releasing economic data and monitoring the weather. It is also a position in which connections to CEOs and the wider business community are crucial. FILE - Former Rep. Doug Collins speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign event at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, Oct. 15, 2024, in Atlanta. Karoline Leavitt, 27, was Trump's campaign press secretary and currently a spokesperson for his transition. She would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps. Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, was a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. Leavitt worked in the White House press office during Trump's first term before she became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump's choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields. Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party's 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall. “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement. Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions. Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next. Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump's first term, leading the U.S. government's spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. “I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation's highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Kash Patel spent several years as a Justice Department prosecutor before catching the Trump administration’s attention as a staffer on Capitol Hill who helped investigate the Russia probe. Patel called for dramatically reducing the agency’s footprint, a perspective that sets him apart from earlier directors who sought additional resources for the bureau. Though the Justice Department in 2021 halted the practice of secretly seizing reporters’ phone records during leak investigations, Patel said he intends to aggressively hunt down government officials who leak information to reporters. Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency . Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X , “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI.” “We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” he added. During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration's promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration. In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.” Trump has named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband. Carr is a longtime member of the commission and served previously as the FCC’s general counsel. He has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times and was nominated by both Trump and President Joe Biden to the commission. Carr made past appearances on “Fox News Channel," including when he decried Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' pre-Election Day appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” He wrote an op-ed last month defending a satellite company owned by Trump supporter Elon Musk. Trump said Atkins, the CEO of Patomak Partners and a former SEC commissioner, was a “proven leader for common sense regulations.” In the years since leaving the SEC, Atkins has made the case against too much market regulation. “He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, & that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the World. He also recognizes that digital assets & other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The commission oversees U.S. securities markets and investments and is currently led by Gary Gensler, who has been leading the U.S. government’s crackdown on the crypto industry. Gensler, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, announced last month that he would be stepping down from his post on the day that Trump is inaugurated — Jan. 20, 2025. Atkins began his career as a lawyer and has a long history working in the financial markets sector, both in government and private practice. In the 1990s, he worked on the staffs of two former SEC chairmen, Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt. Jared Isaacman, 41, is a tech billionaire who bought a series of spaceflights from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk . He is the founder and CEO of a card-processing company and has collaborated closely with Musk ever since buying his first chartered SpaceX flight. He took contest winners on that 2021 trip and followed it in September with a mission where he briefly popped out the hatch to test SpaceX’s new spacewalking suits. Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump's staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. President-elect Donald Trump says he's chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Trump has expressed skepticism about the Western military alliance for years. Trump said in a statement Wednesday that Whitaker is “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot” who “will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The choice of Whitaker as the nation’s representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. President-elect Donald Trump tapped former Sen. David Perdue of Georgia to be ambassador to China, saying in a social media post that the former CEO “brings valuable expertise to help build our relationship with China.” Perdue lost his Senate seat to Democrat Jon Ossoff four years ago and ran unsuccessfully in a primary against Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Perdue pushed Trump's debunked lies about electoral fraud during his failed bid for governor. A Republican congressman from Michigan who served from 1993 to 2011, Hoekstra was ambassador to the Netherlands during Trump's first term. “In my Second Term, Pete will help me once again put AMERICA FIRST,” Trump said in a statement announcing his choice. “He did an outstanding job as United States Ambassador to the Netherlands during our first four years, and I am confident that he will continue to represent our Country well in this new role.” Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. “He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.” Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Guilfoyle is a former California prosecutor and television news personality who led the fundraising for Trump's 2020 campaign and became engaged to Don Jr. in 2020. Trump called her “a close friend and ally” and praised her “sharp intellect make her supremely qualified.” Guilfoyle was on stage with the family on election night. “I am so proud of Kimberly. She loves America and she always has wanted to serve the country as an Ambassador. She will be an amazing leader for America First,” Don Jr. posted. The ambassador positions must be approved by the U.S. Senate. Guilfoyle said in a social media post that she was “honored to accept President Trump’s nomination to serve as the next Ambassador to Greece and I look forward to earning the support of the U.S. Senate.” Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect's golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump's club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination. Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud." Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee. Trump said Wednesday that he will nominate Gen. Keith Kellogg to serve as assistant to the president and special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues, served as National Security Advisor to Trump's former Vice President Mike Pence. For the America First Policy Institute, one of several groups formed after Trump left office to help lay the groundwork for the next Republican administration, Kellogg in April wrote that “bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to a close will require strong, America First leadership to deliver a peace deal and immediately end the hostilities between the two warring parties.” (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib) Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday. The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah. “Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump's statement said, "and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs. He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population. Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner , was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump's priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump's first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump's policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation's economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security. Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump's policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to "run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump's “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Customs and Border Protection, with its roughly 60,000 employees, falls under the Department of Homeland Security. It includes the Border Patrol, which Rodney Scott led during Trump's first term, and is essentially responsible for protecting the country's borders while facilitating trade and travel. Scott comes to the job firmly from the Border Patrol side of the house. He became an agent in 1992 and spent much of his career in San Diego. When he was appointed head of the border agency in January 2020, he enthusiastically embraced Trump's policies. After being forced out under the Biden administration, Scott has been a vocal supporter of Trump's hard-line immigration agenda. He appeared frequently on Fox News and testified in Congress. He's also a senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Former Rep. Billy Long represented Missouri in the U.S. House from 2011 to 2023. Since leaving Congress, Trump said, Long “has worked as a Business and Tax advisor, helping Small Businesses navigate the complexities of complying with the IRS Rules and Regulations.” Former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler was appointed in January 2020 by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and then lost a runoff election a year later. She started a conservative voter registration organization and dived into GOP fundraising, becoming one of the top individual donors and bundlers to Trump’s 2024 comeback campaign. Even before nominating her for agriculture secretary, the president-elect already had tapped Loeffler as co-chair of his inaugural committee. Dr. Mehmet Oz, 64, is a former heart surgeon who hosted “The Dr. Oz Show,” a long-running daytime television talk show. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 and is an outspoken supporter of Trump, who endorsed Oz's bid for elected office. Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York. Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It's not clear how the organization will operate. Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” Russell Vought held the position during Trump’s first presidency. After Trump’s initial term ended, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a think tank that describes its mission as “renew a consensus of America as a nation under God.” Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that he tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Vought has also previously worked as the executive and budget director for the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for conservative House Republicans. He also worked at Heritage Action, the political group tied to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Trump says he’s picking Kari Lake as director of Voice of America, installing a staunch loyalist who ran unsuccessfully for Arizona governor and a Senate seat to head the congressionally funded broadcaster that provides independent news reporting around the world. Lake endeared herself to Trump through her dogmatic commitment to the falsehood that both she and Trump were the victims of election fraud. She has never acknowledged losing the gubernatorial race and called herself the “lawful governor” in her 2023 book, “Unafraid: Just Getting Started.” Dan Scavino, deputy chief of staff Scavino, whom Trump's transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump's longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president. Scavino had run Trump's social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. James Blair, deputy chief of staff Blair was political director for Trump's 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president. Blair was key to Trump's economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate's “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago. Taylor Budowich, deputy chief of staff Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump's 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president. Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency. Jay Bhattacharya, National Institutes of Health Trump has chosen Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health. Bhattacharya is a physician and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, and is a critic of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He promoted the idea of herd immunity during the pandemic, arguing that people at low risk should live normally while building up immunity to COVID-19 through infection. The National Institutes of Health funds medical research through competitive grants to researchers at institutions throughout the nation. NIH also conducts its own research with thousands of scientists working at its labs in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Marty Makary, Food and Drug Administration Makary is a Johns Hopkins surgeon and author who argued against pandemic lockdowns. He routinely appeared on Fox News during the COVID-19 pandemic and wrote opinion articles questioning masks for children. He cast doubt on vaccine mandates but supported vaccines generally. Makary also cast doubt on whether booster shots worked, which was against federal recommendations on the vaccine. Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, Surgeon General Nesheiwat is a general practitioner who serves as medical director for CityMD, a network of urgent care centers in New York and New Jersey. She has been a contributor to Fox News. Dr. Dave Weldon, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Weldon is a former Florida congressman who recently ran for a Florida state legislative seat and lost; Trump backed Weldon’s opponent. In Congress, Weldon weighed in on one of the nation’s most heated debates of the 1990s over quality of life and a right-to-die and whether Terri Schiavo, who was in a persistent vegetative state after cardiac arrest, should have been allowed to have her feeding tube removed. He sided with the parents who did not want it removed. Jamieson Greer, U.S. trade representative Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council Trump is turning to two officials with experience navigating not only Washington but the key issues of income taxes and tariffs as he fills out his economic team. He announced he has chosen international trade attorney Jamieson Greer to be his U.S. trade representative and Kevin Hassett as director of the White House National Economic Council. While Trump has in several cases nominated outsiders to key posts, these picks reflect a recognition that his reputation will likely hinge on restoring the public’s confidence in the economy. Trump said in a statement that Greer was instrumental in his first term in imposing tariffs on China and others and replacing the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, “therefore making it much better for American Workers.” Hassett, 62, served in the first Trump term as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. He has a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania and worked at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute before joining the Trump White House in 2017. Ron Johnson, Ambassador to Mexico Johnson — not the Republican senator — served as ambassador to El Salvador during Trump's first administration. His nomination comes as the president-elect has been threatening tariffs on Mexican imports and the mass deportation of migrants who have arrived to the U.S.-Mexico border. Johnson is also a former U.S. Army veteran and was in the Central Intelligence Agency. Tom Barrack, Ambassador to Turkey Barrack, a wealthy financier, met Trump in the 1980s while helping negotiate Trump’s purchase of the renowned Plaza Hotel. He was charged with using his personal access to the former president to secretly promote the interests of the United Arab Emirates, but was acquitted of all counts at a federal trial in 2022. Trump called him a “well-respected and experienced voice of reason.” Andrew Ferguson, Federal Trade Commission Ferguson, who is already one of the FTC's five commissioners, will replace Lina Khan, who became a lightning rod for Wall Street and Silicon Valley by blocking billions of dollars worth of corporate acquisitions and suing Amazon and Meta while alleging anticompetitive behavior. “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.” Jacob Helberg, undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment Dan Bishop, deputy director for budget at the Office of Budget and Management Leandro Rizzuto, Ambassador to the Washington-based Organization of American States Dan Newlin, Ambassador to Colombia Peter Lamelas, Ambassador to Argentina Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.Although some form of democratic participation in government has always been at the heart of the American experiment, when the United States was founded, only one half of one branch of government was conceived as a purely majoritarian institution. With presidents being chosen via the Electoral College, the Supreme Court being determined by presidential appointments and senatorial confirmations, and senators originally being selected by state legislators (before the ratification of the 17th Amendment in 1913), only the House of Representatives was meant to represent the unadulterated will of a simple majority of voters. Even constitutional amendments require supermajority approval, which appears to be an impossible hurdle to clear in today’s polarized political reality. Indeed, many of the Founders understood the need to protect the rights of the minority by tempering the fleeting passions of the majority – an ideal famously expressed by James Madison, the father of the Constitution, in the Federalist Papers. Alexander Hamilton, in a 1788 congressional address, was much more blunt than Mr. Madison: “It has been observed by an honorable gentleman, that a pure democracy, if it were practicable, would be the most perfect government. Experience has proved that no position in politics is more false than this.” But despite years of complaining that Donald Trump did not “win” the popular vote in 2016, Democrats are conspicuously silent over the fact that the House of Representatives, the Founders’ one vehicle for pure democratic governance, is no longer operating according to that principle. As The Wall Street Journal pointed out in a Nov. 23 editorial, “Democrats won far more House seats than they did votes in many progressive states” thanks to aggressive gerrymandering. “GOP House candidates in New York won 44% of the votes – roughly the same as Donald Trump – but only 27% of the state’s 26 districts. ... The disparity in Illinois is even larger. The state’s Democratic Legislature packed Republicans into three of 17 districts while sprinkling Democrats out across the others. As a result, two Republican incumbents in safe districts ran uncontested. But Republicans won only 18% of Illinois districts even though Mr. Trump carried about 44% of votes statewide.” The Journal, which documented similar disparities in California and Washington, concluded, “Democrats ought to be thankful that liberal states don’t have to draw maps that result in proportional representation. If they did, Republicans would have picked up at least 10 additional seats in California, four each in New York and Illinois, two in Washington and one in Oregon.” (For some reason, we doubt the press will demand answers from the judges who approved the redrawn congressional districts.) Gerrymandering, of course, is a bipartisan game, and Republicans are just as eager as Democrats when it comes to exploiting the rules. But over the next two years, the Republicans’ slim House majority, which does not in fact reflect the party’s share of the vote on Nov. 5, should serve as a reminder that the political left’s complaints about “undemocratic” presidential elections are not principled objections, but the cries of sore losers.

CHANGSHA, China , Dec. 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Modern China's rural revitalization strategy is crafting a remarkable narrative of transformation across the countryside, while progressive opening-up policies encourage foreign visitors to delve deeper into the nation's heartland. On December 26th , VOC.com.cn premiered the second season of its acclaimed series, I Am in Rural China. The show follows Teona Kvartskhava, an international guest, as she explores the villages of Hunan Province , offering viewers a firsthand look at the dynamic implementation of comprehensive rural revitalization. This captivating series invites a global audience to witness the dawn of a new era in China's rural landscapes, showcasing the country's evolving countryside to viewers worldwide. Rice field came as the first surprise. Hunan is the largest rice grower and producer in China . Hunan provides the high-quality and tasty rice. Teona Kvartskhava, a foreigner hardly feeding on rice, was tempted to have plenty of it. In Qunle Village, Lixian County, Changde, she also experienced "Double Rush", which is a time-honored agricultural event in China . An event that used to call for the joint efforts of all family members, has now become much easier thanks to technology. Departing from Lixian County for the moment, Teona Kvartskhava embarked on an exciting trip of tastes in Rucheng, Chenzhou , Southern Hunan . Hunan people are keen and expert on peppery food and spicy taste dominates the Hunan cuisine. Hunan is also rich in varieties of peppers. Jingpo town, a well-known town where spicy food prevails. It is a producer of red cluster pepper, officially one of the hottest peppers in China . From the crowded market, to the red and yellow pepper planting base, and then to the modern processing pepper workshop, the small cluster pepper strung up all corners of the town, so that the original ordinary mountain town has become extraordinarily lively and affluent. Of course, the "star" of the countryside here is not only agriculture, but also culture, which has also blossomed in this ancient land. As the birthplace of papermaking, China has preserved a unique handmade papermaking technique, which is used to make some "special" papers. In Shanghong Village, Liuyang, Teona Kvartskhava was lucky to meet two Chinese masters, who showed her hands-on experiences of "Gushan Tribute Paper" and "Floral Paper". As the process progresses, the paper took shape in her hands, as if history and culture were meeting in front of her eyes, and became the "first paper" in Teona Kvartskhava's life. So,What's rural China like? It's about hospitable peasants, about various agricultural produce, about profound history and culture, about colorful intangible cultural heritage. It's like a book telling numerous absorbing stories. Hopefully Teona Kvartskhava'll be luckier to visit more villages for their unique interest and charm. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/my-date-with-rural-chinavoccomcn-unveils-season-two-of-i-am-in-rural-china-302339884.html SOURCE voc.com.cn

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fortune gems/wow super win slot jili PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain retained a six-point lead at the top of Ligue 1 after a labored 3-0 home win over Toulouse on Friday. The defending champion dominated the first half but it took until the 35th minute to open the scoring. Young Portuguese midfielder João Neves spun to meet a cross from the right and struck a superb half volley from just outside the box. Lucas Beraldo got a second with six minutes remaining when he pounced on loose ball and fired home. Vitinha made it 3-0 in stoppage time when he showed fine footwork inside the box to finish off a quick counterattack. The scoreline was harsh on Toulouse, which came into the game in a more even second half. Only Vitinha’s last-gasp tackle stopped Zakaria Aboukhlal from equalizing after 69 minutes and then Shavy Babicka blazed over from close range a minute later when he should have hit the target. The win was a confidence boost for Luis Enrique’s side ahead of next Tuesday’s Champions League encounter at Bayern Munich. PSG lies in 25th place in the 36-team Champions League table with one win in four matches and outside the playoff spots. The win came immediately after second-placed Monaco beaten Brest 3-2 to briefly close the gap at the top to three points. Brest, which faces Barcelona next week in the Champions League, turned in another inconsistent French league performance and not the sparkling form it has shown in Europe. Brest has struggled in Ligue 1, where it remains 12th, but shone with three wins from four in its first ever Champions League campaign. It was behind after just five minutes on Friday when Maghnes Akliouche scored with a superb airborne volley, and 2-0 down after 24 minutes thanks to Aleksandr Golovin. The Russian striker seized on a poor pass just outside the Brest penalty area and his low shot was perfectly placed to sneak in off the post and give him his first goal in nine league appearances. On-loan Brighton striker Abdallah Sima used his 1.88-meter frame to outjump the Monaco defense four minutes into the second half and cut the deficit but Akliouche restored Monaco’s two-goal cushion when he brilliantly finished a quick counterattack in stoppage time. Ludovic Ajorque got a second for Brest in the sixth minute of added time but it was not enough in a second half most notable for the red card shown to Brest coach Éric Roy. AP soccer:

The mayor of Esquimalt says she is going to meet with local service providers and the provincial government after the City of Victoria called on Capital Region municipalities to offer their own emergency warming centres. In early November, Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto wrote letters to the other Greater Victoria municipalities , calling on them to "stand up their own Emergency Warming Centre for the unhoused during extreme weather events starting immediately," as the city holds about 80 per cent of the region's warming centres. At the Monday (Dec. 2) council meeting, Esquimalt Mayor Barbara Desjardins said she recently had a conversation with local non-profit Rainbow Kitchen, and said there is a lack of understanding as to what exactly each service provider does and what services they can offer, and where the gaps are in the warming centre system. "The reality is that I can just call together a meeting of the social service providers and find out what exactly they do, and we can compare and come back with where the gaps are," Desjardins told council. Couns. Ken Armour and Tim Morrison agreed with starting the conversation with local non-profits, but they did caution not to raise expectations that the municipality will step in, saying it should be a provincial responsibility. Morrison also mentioned that council has a good relationship with the new Esquimalt-Colwood MLA, as Darlene Rotchford is a former council member herself, and opted to ask her to join the conversation as well. He also mentioned discussing with religious organizations, mainly churches, and Desjardins agreed. "This is not for us to take over from another government's responsibility but it is going to be [valuable} in terms of who does what in our community to [help] direct people to services as well," said Desjardins. Since Alto wrote to the other municipalities, Saanich has since ordered a staff report to explore options for more emergency shelter spaces, and the Sidney CAO said emergency weather response is up to the province. "I do support as a first step meeting with non-profits to establish a baseline of services that they have here in Esquimalt, and this knowledge will also support that work that we're going to be doing with the community advisory group and the Primary Care Network, they're also looking at what is provided through the non-profits, so I think it's a great first step," said Coun. Andrea Boardman. Victoria News has reached out to the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness for comment.How the Nissan GT-R was developed by Isuzu truck engineersBankwell Financial's Lawrence Seidman acquires $897 in stock

CENTURION, South Africa (AP): South Africa tailenders Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen hung in against relentless fast bowler Mohammad Abbas for a tense two-wicket win in the first Test yesterday to seal the Proteas’ place in next year’s World Test Championship (WTC) final. Jansen (16 not out) overshadowed Abbas’ brilliant figures of 6-54 with a square driven boundary against the fast bowler as South Africa reached 150-8 just after lunch on Day 4 and escaped with a close win in the opener of the two-match series. “Quite an emotional moment for me, good advert for test cricket,” said South Africa captain Temba Bavuma, who made 40. “We haven’t been ruthless but have found a way to ensure the result was on our side. Lot of joy and happiness on our side, a bit of a rollercoaster, glad that we were able to get the result.” Abbas, making a comeback after more than three years in the Test wilderness, had knocked back South Africa’s tricky chase of 148 runs in a marathon 13-over spell before lunch on Day 4 as the home team limped to 99-8, losing four wickets for three runs. However, Rabada changed gears in an unbroken 51-run stand with Jansen and made an unbeaten 31 off 26 balls with five fours to seal a memorable victory and denied Pakistan its first test win in South Africa in almost 18 years. South Africa had started this WTC cycle with a 1-1 drawn series against India before getting swept 2-0 in New Zealand. But since then the Proteas have beaten West Indies, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to stay on top of the table. “It (WTC final) is a big one, not just for myself but also the team and the coach,” Bavuma said. “The way we started our campaign, against India and then New Zealand with a not-so-strong team, and the way we have gone through with our performances, not many gave us a chance.” India, Australia and Sri Lanka are the other teams still in contention for next June’s WTC final against South Africa at Lord’s. Captain Temba Bavuma (40) and Aiden Markram (37) had thwarted Abbas for an hour after South Africa resumed at a wobbly 27-3, still needing 121 for victory. Bavuma’s controversial dismissal punctuated a South Africa collapse in the latter half of first session with Abbas grabbing three off his six balls in a sensational home team collapse. Bavuma, who made 40, surprisingly didn’t request a television review when replays suggested that Abbas’ ball had brushed the batter’s pocket and didn’t make contact with the inside edge of the bat but the South African skipper walked back to the dressing room. Abbas bowled an unchanged marathon spell of 13 overs, but had to wait as Markram and Bavuma saw off eight overs from the fast bowlers. Resuming at 27-3, Bavuma and Markram showed plenty of patience against Abbas’ probing line and length before the fast bowler finally got the breakthrough after the first drinks break. Abbas was rewarded for his brilliant seam bowling when he beat the outside edge of Markram’s bat and knocked back the off stump. Bavuma survived a couple of close chances when he successfully overturned an on-field lbw decision against him early in the day and Naseem Shah couldn’t hold onto a sharp catch at fine leg as he overstepped the boundary cushion while grabbing the ball over his head. South Africa had controlled the game at 96-4 before Bavuma’s dismissal saw Abbas finding the outside edges of David Bedingham (14) and Corbin Bosch’s (0) bat off successive deliveries and in between Kyle Verreynne dragged Naseem Shah’s delivery back onto his stumps. Abbas found the outside edge of Rabada’s bat in his first over after lunch that fell just short of wicketkeeper Rizwan before both tailenders took the team home. “Extremely proud of the efforts, but going forward we need to be ruthless,” Pakistan captain Shan Masood said. “We keep making the same mistakes but we have to get over the line, seize moments.” The second Test begins at Cape Town on Friday.Walmart has this mega-sized 75-inch 4K UltraHD Roku TV on sale for less than $480 in a huge holiday deal

Maryland is suing the company that produces the waterproof material Gore-Tex often used for raincoats and other outdoor gear, alleging its leaders kept using “forever chemicals” long after learning about serious health risks associated with them. The complaint, which was filed last week in federal court, focuses on a cluster of 13 facilities in northeastern Maryland operated by Delaware-based W.L. Gore & Associates. It alleges the company polluted the air and water around its facilities with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances , jeopardizing the health of surrounding communities while raking in profits. The lawsuit adds to other claims filed in recent years, including a class action on behalf of Cecil County residents in 2023 demanding Gore foot the bill for water filtration systems, medical bills and other damages associated with decades of harmful pollution in the largely rural community. “PFAS are linked to cancer, weakened immune systems, and can even harm the ability to bear children,” Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said in a statement. “It is unacceptable for any company to knowingly contaminate our drinking water with these toxins, putting Marylanders at risk of severe health conditions.” Gore spokesperson Donna Leinwand Leger said the company is “surprised by the Maryland Attorney General’s decision to initiate legal action, particularly in light of our proactive and intensive engagement with state regulators over the past two years.” “We have been working with Maryland, employing the most current, reliable science and technology to assess the potential impact of our operations and guide our ongoing, collaborative efforts to protect the environment,” the company said in a statement, noting a Dec. 18 report that contains nearly two years of groundwater testing results. But attorney Philip Federico, who represents plaintiffs in the class action and other lawsuits against Gore, called the company’s efforts “too little, much too late.” In the meantime, he said, residents are continuing to suffer — one of his clients was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer. “It’s typical corporate environmental contamination,” he said. “They’re in no hurry to fix the problem.” The synthetic chemicals are especially harmful because they’re nearly indestructible and can build up in various environments, including the human body. In addition to cancers and immune system problems, exposure to certain levels of PFAS has been linked to increased cholesterol levels, reproductive health issues and developmental delays in children, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Gore leaders failed to warn people living near its Maryland facilities about the potential impacts, hoping to protect their corporate image and avoid liability, according to the state’s lawsuit. The result has been “a toxic legacy for generations to come,” the lawsuit alleges. Since the chemicals are already in the local environment, protecting residents now often means installing complex and expensive water filtration systems. People with private wells have found highly elevated levels of dangerous chemicals in their water, according to the class action lawsuit. The Maryland facilities are located in a rural area just across the border from Delaware, where Gore has become a longtime fixture in the community. The company, which today employs more than 13,000 people, was founded in 1958 after Wilbert Gore left the chemical giant DuPont to start his own business. Its profile rose with the development of Gore-Tex , a lightweight waterproof material created by stretching polytetrafluoroethylene, which is better known by the brand name Teflon that’s used to coat nonstick pans. The membrane within Gore-Tex fabric has billions of pores that are smaller than water droplets, making it especially effective for outdoor gear. The state’s complaint traces Gore’s longstanding relationship with DuPont , arguing that information about the chemicals’ dangers was long known within both companies as they sought to keep things quiet and boost profits. It alleges that as early as 1961, DuPont scientists knew the chemical caused adverse liver reactions in rats and dogs. DuPont has faced widespread litigation in recent years. Along with two spinoff companies, it announced a $1.18 billion deal last year to resolve complaints of polluting many U.S. drinking water systems with forever chemicals. The Maryland lawsuit seeks to hold Gore responsible for costs associated with the state’s ongoing investigations and cleanup efforts, among other damages. State oversight has ramped up following litigation from residents alleging their drinking water was contaminated. Until then, the company operated in Cecil County with little scrutiny. Gore announced in 2014 that it had eliminated perfluorooctanoic acid from the raw materials used to create Gore-Tex. But it’s still causing long-term impacts because it persists for so long in the environment, attorneys say. Over the past two years, Gore has hired an environmental consulting firm to conduct testing in the area and provided bottled water and water filtration systems to residents near certain Maryland facilities, according to a webpage describing its efforts. Recent testing of drinking water at residences near certain Gore sites revealed perfluorooctanoic acid levels well above what the EPA considers safe, according to state officials. Attorneys for the state acknowledged Gore’s ongoing efforts to investigate and address the problem but said the company needs to step up and be a better neighbor. “While we appreciate Gore’s limited investigation to ascertain the extent of PFAS contamination around its facilities, much more needs to be done to protect the community and the health of residents,” Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain said in a statement. “We must remove these forever chemicals from our natural resources urgently, and we expect responsible parties to pay for this remediation.”Pure Storage and Kioxia Collaborate to Drive Scalability, Efficiency, and Performance in Hyperscale Data Centers

Asian shares were mixed on Monday after stocks fell broadly on Friday as Wall Street closed out a holiday-shortened week on a down note. U.S. futures were lower while oil prices were little changed. In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi added 0.6% to 2,418.80. But shares of Jeju Air Co. lost 8.8% after one of the company’s jets skidded off a runway , slammed into a concrete fence and burst into flames Sunday in South Korea as its landing gear failed to deploy. 179 people died in the crash. Political turmoil continued as South Korean law enforcement officials requested a court warrant on Monday to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol. They are investigating whether his martial law decree on Dec. 3 amounted to rebellion. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.9% to 39,914.21 as the dollar gained against the Japanese yen, trading at 157.83 yen, up from 157.75 yen. The Tokyo market will wrap up trading for 2024 with a yearend ceremony as Japan begins its New Year holidays, the biggest festival of the year. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 0.3% to 20,030.63 while the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.3% at 3,408.72. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.9% to 8,191.50. On Friday, the S&P 500 fell 1.1% to 5,970.84. Roughly 90% of stocks in the benchmark index lost ground, but it managed to hold onto a modest gain of 0.7% for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8% to 42,992.21. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 1.5%, to 19,722.03. The losses were made worse by sharp declines for the Big Tech stocks known as the “Magnificent 7”, which can heavily influence the direction of the market because of their large size. A wide range of retailers also fell. Amazon fell 1.5% and Best Buy slipped 1.5%. The sector is being closely watched for clues on how it performed during the holiday shopping season. The S&P 500 gained nearly 3% over a 3-day stretch before breaking for the Christmas holiday. On Thursday, the index posted a small decline. Despite Friday's drop, the market is moving closer to another standout annual finish . The S&P 500 is on track for a gain of around 25% in 2024. That would mark a second consecutive yearly gain of more than 20%, the first time that has happened since 1997-1998. The gains have been driven partly by upbeat economic data showing that consumers continued spending and the labor market remained strong. Inflation, while still high, has also been steadily easing. A report on Friday showed that sales and inventory estimates for the wholesales trade industry fell 0.2% in November, following a slight gain in October. That weaker-than-expected report follows an update on the labor market Thursday that showed unemployment benefits held steady last week. The stream of upbeat economic data and easing inflation helped prompt a reversal in the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy this year. Expectations for interest rate cuts also helped drive market gains. The central bank recently delivered its third cut to interest rates in 2024. Even though inflation has come closer to the central bank's target of 2%, it remains stubbornly above that mark and worries about it heating up again have tempered the forecast for more interest rate cuts. Inflation concerns have added to uncertainties heading into 2025, which include the labor market’s path ahead and shifting economic policies under incoming President Donald Trump. Worries have risen that Trump’s preference for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation , a bigger U.S. government debt and difficulties for global trade. In other dealings early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 1 cent to $70.61 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 1 cent to $73.78 per barrel. The euro fell to $1.0427 from $1.0433.Illinois rolls out first phase of plan to modernize professional licensing (copy)TRAVELING AROUND the country allows one to experience unique sports cultures of various cities and regions across America’s fruited plain. Sports tourism is real. For example, folks come to New England just to see Fenway Park, the basketball Hall of Fame, or even Loudon’s NASCAR track. Which brings us to New Orleans. The Crescent City. The Big Easy. The Paris of the South. I recently visited N’Awlins, aka “The City That Care Forgot,” for an NCLGS Conference (National Council of Legislators for Gaming States). There was certainly a sports component to the confab, as most states now have legalized sports betting, including New Hampshire. I was accompanied by distinguished state Sens.Howard Pearl and Timothy Lang (the “Father of Granite State Sports Gaming”) to the birthplace of jazz. Lang was the prime mover behind legalizing sports betting in New Hampshire in 2019 and his expertise in the area brought him national renown. The senator from Sanbornton deserves much credit for bringing $137 million in legal gambling dollars to state coffers since 2020, money helping schools across New Hampshire. Professional development, idea exchanges, and networking are valuable byproducts of such conventions. For example, I made it a point to attend a session on player harassment, where the panel included NBC football analyst Eric Froton, former Kansas tight end DeShawn Hanika, and former NBA standout Randy Livingston. I didn’t realize the grief that athletes can get. Hanika shared that he’d received a Venmo request for $5,000 from an angry bettor who claimed Hanika cost him that amount when he dropped a pass in a big game. Louisiana State University has a huge sports following in the Pelican State (aka the Bayou State), although Tulane University also has many fans. And while New Orleans doesn’t have an MLB or an NHL franchise, the Big Easy does have an NBA team, the Pelicans, who have the league’s worst record. The Paris of the South was once home to the New Orleans Jazz — the hoop team — which abandoned the Crescent City for a different City of the Saints: Salt Lake City. The SLC NBA team incongruously kept the Jazz nickname, even though New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz, while SLC features the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Mountains. The gaming confab included a “field trip” to the New Orleans’ Fair Grounds Horse Track and Casino, owned by Churchill Downs, a conference sponsor. After a social media post, Lang received a request from a friend to bring horse racing and casino gambling to Salem, N.H. “Stand by,” replied Lang, with a smile on his face. “I have a bill.” While we were in town, so too were the NFL’s Washington Commanders (née Redskins), who were there to play the New Orleans Saints, who can claim one Super Bowl victory since 1967 — which is one more than 12 other NFL teams and five less than New England’s Patriots. In the interests of self-education and cultural awareness, we also made several visits to legendary Bourbon Street. The energy, the music, the food, and the other sights and sounds were amazing. NFL fans clad in Washington Commander garb were everywhere — a great example of sports tourism. One can see why NFL fans might want to do a December road trip to see their heroes play in New Orleans, as opposed to, say, Green Bay? We lamented that we’d neglected to extend our stay one more night to watch the Saints host the Commanders at the SuperDome. But we did place bets on New Orleans to cover the spread. It seemed like a courteous thing to do for our wonderful host city. We watched the game at the airport. A touchdown with no time left cut a Washington lead to 20-19. A Saint two-point conversion attempt failed — but the team covered the spread. Ah yes. Easy money in The Big Easy. We’ll reinvest our profits in the Granite State. For the children. Go Saints (and Pelicans too)!

Bills seek to lock up AFC's No. 2 seed in closing home schedule against the Jets

NoneThe University of Illinois Covers Up Their Actual Racist Hiring Practices in Educational Mumbo Jumbo

DIDWW brings advanced voice and SMS solutions to ITW Asia 2024 11-26-2024 09:04 PM CET | Business, Economy, Finances, Banking & Insurance Press release from: Getnews / PR Agency: The Branded Word Image: https://www.getnews.info/uploads/c38f455b2f2a5a2930c089a2bd86bbcc.jpg DIDWW, a global provider of premium quality VoIP communications and SIP trunking services, will participate as an exhibitor at ITW Asia 2024 [ https://internationaltelecomsweekasia.com/ ]. This prominent connectivity and digital infrastructure event will feature DIDWW's latest advancements in its innovative voice and SMS solutions for business communications. The ITW Asia 2024 expo is scheduled for the 4-5 December and will take place at the Shangri-La Singapore Hotel, Singapore. This show will gather over 1,200 industry professionals from across the Asia-Pacific region, providing a unique opportunity for networking and collaboration. Attendees can look forward to insightful keynote sessions, informative panel discussions, and exploring the latest innovations in telecommunications and digital infrastructure. Visitors to ITW Asia 2024 are invited to connect with the DIDWW team at booth No. 600, located at the Shangri-La Singapore Hotel. Please join us to discuss the latest advancements in voice and SMS technology, and discover how DIDWW's innovative solutions can transform business communication infrastructures of any size. Attendees can delve into the features of DIDWW's robust two-way SIP trunking, [ https://www.didww.com/services/two-way-sip-trunking ] A2P and P2P SMS services [ https://www.didww.com/services/two-way-sms ], and other VoIP offerings. To arrange a dedicated session in advance, participants may schedule a meeting via email at sales@didww.com or contact their personal account manager. Karolis Jurys, Commercial Director at DIDWW, said, "We are eager to present our newest voice and messaging solutions at ITW Asia 2024. This event is an excellent platform for attendees to discover how our reliable and cost-effective alternatives to traditional telephone networks can significantly improve their business communications, driving growth and success." About DIDWW DIDWW is a platform for telecommunications and business professionals with full self-service access and real-time provisioning, APIs and all the necessary building blocks for achieving the ultimate control over Voice and SMS services. The company offers the largest fully compliant international coverage of local, national, mobile, toll-free voice and SMS-enabled virtual phone numbers [ https://www.didww.com/phone-numbers/all-phone-numbers ], two-way local and global SIP trunks, access to local emergency services, flexible capacity options, free global number portability, a highly scalable business phone system, and more. DIDWW delivers premium quality services to thousands of operators and enterprises worldwide through a private and fully geo-redundant network with mission-critical reliability and guaranteed SLAs. Their customers enjoy advanced solutions coupled with a unique service experience and superior value, all driven by a highly motivated team of professionals. To learn more about DIDWW, please visit https://www.didww.com/ . Media Contact Company Name: DIDWW Contact Person: Vilija Simkiene Email: Send Email [ http://www.universalpressrelease.com/?pr=didww-brings-advanced-voice-and-sms-solutions-to-itw-asia-2024 ] Phone: +1 (212) 461 1854 City: Dublin State: Ireland Country: United States Website: http://www.didww.com This release was published on openPR.Stock market today: Asian shares are mixed after Wall Street slips, led by tech giantsNew Delhi: Replacing the century-old criminal laws with a new set of legislations for introducing a modern and technology-driven criminal justice system, rolling out the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act and fire-fighting to check unabated violence in Manipur kept the Union home ministry busy in 2024. Assisting the Election Commission in holding the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir without major incidents and bringing down the violence in Naxal-affected states and northeastern region are the other key highlights of the country’s crucial ministry. While the population enumeration exercise Census continues to be on hold for past four years as no decision has been taken by the ministry as to when it will be carried out, the ministry created five year districts in Ladakh and renamed Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands as Sri Vijaya Puram during the year. The three new criminal laws — Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam — replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872 respectively. The new laws came into effect from July 1. Home Minister Amit Shah, who piloted the legislations, said the new laws would give priority to providing justice, unlike the colonial-era laws that gave primacy to penal action. “These laws are made by Indians, for Indians and by an Indian Parliament and marks the end of colonial criminal justice laws,” he said. Shah said the laws were not just about changing the nomenclature but bringing about a complete overhaul. “Soul, body and spirit of the new laws are Indian,” he said. The new laws brought in a modern justice system, incorporating provisions such as Zero FIR, online registration of police complaints, summonses through electronic modes such as SMS and mandatory videography of crime scenes for all heinous crimes. According to home ministry officials, the new laws have tried to address some of the current social realities and crimes and are going to provide a mechanism to effectively deal with these, keeping in view the ideals enshrined in the Constitution. The CAA, which was enacted in December 2019 for granting Indian nationality to persecuted Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who came to India on or before December 31, 2014, was rolled out in March and the first set of 14 people were granted Indian citizenship under the law in May. Shah termed the occasion of granting Indian citizenship under the CAA as a “historic day”, saying the decades-long wait of those who faced religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan is over. After the enactment in 2019, the CAA got the president’s assent a few days later but the rules under which the Indian citizenship were supposed to be granted were issued only on March 11 after over a delay of four years. The passing of the CAA in 2019 sparked protests in different parts of the country with agitators terming it “discriminatory”. Over a hundred people had lost their lives during the anti-CAA protests or police action in various parts of the country. To allay fears of a section of Muslims and students regarding the CAA, the home ministry, a day after the CAA rules were issued, asserted that the Indian Muslims need not worry as the new legislation would not impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the community which enjoys equal rights as their Hindu brethren. The ministry made it clear that “no Indian citizen would be asked to produce any document to prove his citizenship after this Act”. Intermittent violence continues to rock Manipur, where the first bout of ethnic clash between majority Meiteis and tribal Kukis was witnessed in May 2023. Even after the death of about 260 people, injury to hundreds and displacement of thousands of people, peace continues to be elusive in the northeastern state. Though there have been efforts from the central government to bring the warring communities into negotiating table, sporadic violence continues there. Members of the ruling BJP were also not spared. Mobs set fire to the residences of several BJP legislators, one of whom is a senior minister, and a Congress MLA in various districts of Imphal Valley in November besides making a foiled attempt to storm the ancestral house of Chief Minister N Biren Singh. Seeing the fragile situation, the Centre in November reimposed the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Manipur’s six police station areas, including the violence-hit Jiribam. On December 24, the Centre appointed former union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as new Manipur governor, in an apparent bid to help itself find a lasting peace. However, it is to be seen how Bhalla will walk through the difficult terrain of the sensitive state. Jammu and Kashmir witnessed a relatively peaceful assembly elections, which was held after a gap of 10 years. According to a presentation given by the home ministry to a parliamentary panel, there has been over 70 per cent decline in terror-related incidents in Jammu and Kashmir since 2019, when Article 370 was scrapped and the erstwhile state was bifurcated into two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Continuing its thrust on comprehensive development of villages located in remote areas along the border with China, the government allocated Rs 1,050 crore for 2024-25 under the Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP) that will benefit select villages in 19 districts in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh. The central government has approved the VVP as a centrally sponsored scheme on February 15, 2023, with financial outlay of Rs 4,800 crore for the financial year 2022-23 to 2025-26 for comprehensive development of the select villages in 46 blocks in 19 districts abutting the northern border.

An online debate over foreign workers in tech shows tensions in Trump’s political coalition

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SHENZHEN, China , Dec. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 26, 2024 , Access Advance LLC ("AA") and TCL Electronics Holdings Limited ("TCL" or "Client") announced that TCL had officially joined the HEVC Advance Patent Pool as a licensee. PurpleVine IP Group ("PurpleVine") played a pivotal role in this achievement, providing full-spectrum services, including strategic planning, global litigation management, and licensing negotiation support. PurpleVine's efforts were instrumental in helping TCL finalize agreements with AA and multiple HEVC Advance licensors, resolving years of complex global litigation over HEVC standard-essential patents("SEPs"). Since 2021, leading HEVC Advance licensors - including Dolby, GEVC, Philips, Mitsubishi Electric, JVCKENWOOD, NEC, ETRI, and IP Bridge - have filed dozens of infringement lawsuits and sought injunctions against TCL across jurisdictions such as Germany , the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in Europe , and Brazil . PurpleVine provided TCL with a comprehensive defense strategy tailored to each jurisdiction. Working closely with local counsel, the PurpleVine team devised FRAND-compliant arguments, non-infringement defenses, and patent invalidation strategies that not only neutralized injunction threats but also achieved an outstanding success rate of over 90% in invalidating asserted patents during first-instance rulings. PurpleVine also spearheaded counteractions against AA and HEVC Advance licensors in multiple jurisdictions, including China , Brazil , and Germany . Notably, PurpleVine assisted TCL in filing two landmark cases in Chinese courts - one challenging SEP licensing rates and another alleging abuse of market dominance. These cases were the first in the world where courts asserted jurisdiction over SEP pool licensing rates and alleged monopolistic practices, setting a groundbreaking legal precedent. Daniel Fu , General Counsel of TCL, stated, "We are pleased to have signed a license with Access Advance's HEVC patent pool, with the help of PurpleVine IP. The transaction is beneficial to the licensing ecosystem and the development of cutting-edge technologies for the welfare of consumers." This multi-jurisdictional case, involving complex legal challenges, spanning several years, highlights PurpleVine's expertise in managing high-stakes IP disputes. PurpleVine's strategic leadership, effective litigation management, and skilled negotiations reaffirm its position as a leading provider of cross-border intellectual property services. Disclaimer: This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or an official statement regarding litigation. About PurpleVine IP Group PurpleVine IP Group, based in Shenzhen, China , is a leading intellectual property service provider with a global perspective. The firm offers one-stop IP services, including patent and trademark prosecution, analysis, global transactions, licensing negotiations, and dispute resolution. The core members of PurpleVine's litigation and dispute resolution team have backgrounds in top international law firms and leading corporate legal departments. They have managed patent litigation and invalidation cases in over 50 courts worldwide. The firm also includes SEP (Standard Essential Patent) experts from the telecommunications industry, who have been involved in hundreds of patent licensing negotiations and litigations. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/purplevine-drives-tcls-successful-entry-into-the-hevc-advance-patent-pool-302320761.html SOURCE PurpleVine IP

 

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Pep Guardiola: If I can’t reverse Manchester City slide then I have to goBy Sheree Strange Australia is a big country, and exploring all of it can feel overwhelming if you're on a tight budget. Luckily, there are many amazing accessible experiences that won't break the bank across all the states and territories. Befriend the wildlife Queenslanders are a friendly bunch – and we're not just talking about the humans. There are plenty of opportunities to befriend the wildlife of the Sunshine State (just be sure to do so safely and under supervision). If your budget doesn't stretch to an all-day ticket to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, or you don't have a full day in your itinerary to spare, you can pop along to the daily Lorikeet Feedings for free. READ MORE: The best hotels in Australia have been crowned for 2024 At 8am and 4pm, the beautiful birds descend on the flat and paved Lorikeet Arena and feast on the seed provided right from your hands. You can watch from a short distance behind a low fence (height of 630mm to allow unobstructed views), or you can get in there and feed them yourself for a gold coin donation. Frolic in the forest If your holiday takes you to Far North Queensland , you'll want to take full advantage of your proximity to one of the world's oldest tropical rainforests. The Wet Tropics are 80 million years older than the Amazon, and home to staggering biodiversity in flora and fauna. You can experience a section of it for free at the Cairns Botanic Gardens, which has the best exhibition of tropical plants in Australia. Most areas are fully accessible (though some paths in the Flecker Gardens are not suitable for wheelchair users), and there is a helpful accessibility map available on the local government website , along with details about free walking and bird-watching tours. READ MORE: Top locations to escape off-grid in Japan Make a (beach) day of it Many tourists head straight for the big-name beaches of Bondi and Coogee, but there's a lot more accessible fun to be had on a budget at Manly Beach. Take one of Sydney's accessible ferries across to Manly , and spend the day on the scenic foreshore. If you want to take a dip, head to the Queenscliff Rockpool (widened ramp access from the beach and modified pool stairs) or borrow a beach wheelchair from the Manly Life Saving Club and get out on the sand. Rinse off at the accessible showers, then wheel or wander along the flat paved paths of the beachfront promenade. Kids will have a wonderful time at the North Steyne Major inclusive playground , with a pod swing, carousel, sensory play boards, and a Butterfly see-saw to cater to all abilities. Appreciate some art Across New South Wales , you have plenty of opportunities for art appreciation, with many museums offering free or discounted admission. The Art Gallery of New South Wales is the shining jewel in the art scene's crown, welcoming over one million visitors each year. Admission is free, and the galleries are open 10am-5pm daily (excluding Christmas Day and Good Friday). The venue is designed for universal access, with barrier-free entrances and navigation throughout. There are both accessible bathrooms and a Changing Places facility available for use. Additional aids and supports are available for people with low vision or colour vision deficiency, people who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing , and people with sensory sensitivities . Everyone gets an opportunity to fully appreciate the art on display. Go big before you go home No trip around Australia is complete without checking one or two Big Things off your bucket list. There are several you can visit across New South Wales, including: the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour ; the Big Merino in Goulburn; the Big Prawn in Ballina; the Big Potato in Robertson; and the Big Kookaburra in Kurri Kurri. Most of these sculptures are free to see, and can be accessed by vehicle or on foot and/or wheel. You can purchase a souvenir or a themed meal at each, or simply snap a photo for your scrapbook for a free memento. Bask on the beach The beautiful beaches of Western Australia are less crowded than their East Coast counterparts, with free services and support available for visitors with disabilities. The beach at Hillary's Boat Harbour has been developed with accessibility in mind. There is permanent beach matting leading to the water at the swimming cove, and an accessible fishing platform at the northern end of the harbour. If you're approaching from the water, or heading out that way, a Universal Floating Pontoon allows for easy boarding and disembarking. Two free beach wheelchairs are available for use. Sorrento Beach, also in Perth 's northern suburbs, has a beach wheelchair and all-terrain walker free to use on a first-come-first-serve basis (no bookings required). Park at the convenient accessible parking, and make your way around on the firm sand with gentle gradient, or stick to the barrier-free paths. There is a Changing Places facility at Sorrento, accessible with an MLAK key. Get back to nature National Parks throughout Western Australia have step-free paths and viewing decks, allowing you to get close to nature without sacrificing accessibility. In Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, take in spectacular views on the Cape to Cape Track, with a 3.5km path from Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse to Sugarloaf Rock lookout. The sealed grade 1 track is suitable for visitors using mobility aids , and there is seating en route if you'd like to rest and take it all in. Entry is free. Take it up a notch with the incredible Valley of the Giants treetop walk in Walpole-Nornalup National Park. The 600m path is suspended 40m above the forest floor, with incredible unique views from accessible vantage points. There are complimentary wheelchairs available for visitors with limited mobility, as well as designated parking and accessible bathrooms. Peer into the past The newly-renovated National ANZAC Centre in Albany offers an award-winning experience for visitors of all ages and abilities. The museum uses multimedia, interactive technology and historical artefacts to create a personal connection with the past, as well as pay tribute to those who served. All areas, including outdoor pathways and interiors, are step-free. There is designated parking and a wheelchair accessible bathroom available. Tickets are $25 for adults, with concessions available for cardholders and children. Companion Cards are accepted. Group tours of 10+ people also attract a lower rate. While you're there, wander around the grounds and take in the Princess Royal Fortress Convoy Walk & Lookout. You'll see original gun batteries, large coastal gun defences and the barracks where officers lived and worked. If you're lucky you may even catch a traditional gun salute! Entry is free, with gold coin donations encouraged. READ MORE: 10 must-try winter activities for all abilities See the sun set Darwin , the territory's capital, has endless excellent spots to catch a truly stunning sunset. Access at some of the more popular spots, like Mindil Beach, can be challenging, but there are plenty of alternatives. Cullen Bay Beach has an accessible path that runs parallel to the sandy beach, with unobstructed views as the sun goes down. The Darwin Waterfront also has step-free access across a single level, designated parking, accessible bathrooms, and a Mobi-Mat down to the water until 6pm. Go chasing waterfalls The Northern Territory has a reputation for being dry and dusty, but the picturesque waterfalls prove that it's undeserved. Wangi Falls in Litchfield National Park (150km south of Darwin) has everything you need for a low-cost day trip. There's plenty of undercover seating in accessible paved areas, a wheelchair accessible viewing platform, gas barbecues for lunch (or the Wangi Falls Cafe if you'd prefer lunch made for you), and two access points to take a dip (including one by ramp). The falls are closed to swimming during the wet season (October-March), but that's when they're flowing fastest, which looks fantastic in photos. Meander around the markets The Northern Territory has some of the best local markets in Australia. Each has its own community flavour, but you'll always find amazing bargains. The Parap Markets (8am-2pm every Saturday, whatever the weather) has incredible Asian cuisine on offer, as well as arts and crafts. Head down early to Rapid Creek Markets (7am-2pm Saturday and Sunday, year-round), and you'll get the best pick of fresh produce to fuel you for your whole trip. The Nightcliff Sunday Markets (8am-2pm) is the best spot to pick up a unique gift with a wide range of crafts and plants, or treat yourself to a reflexology massage, or simply relax in the shade and enjoy free entertainment by local artists. Try a tipple No trip to South Australia is complete without trying a tipple in the world-renowned wine region. You needn't shell out big bucks to have a taste of some of the best wines in the world, as cellar door experiences are usually very reasonably priced. The fully-accessible ArtWine Estate tasting experience is just $25 per person, which gets you six fresh and vibrant wines plus a small Adelaide Hills cheese tasting plate and delicious house-roasted almonds. Check out a church Adelaide is the City of Churches, and there are many architectural wonders to behold. St Peter's Cathedral is a landmark in the city, and free to visit. Worshippers can attend morning or evening services, and sight-seers are welcomed across the middle of the day (check opening hours close to your visit, as they are subject to change for events). The main body of the cathedral is wheelchair accessible, with an accessible unisex bathroom and designated parking. Indulge your sweet tooth Chocaholics rejoice! Haigh's Chocolates offers free tours of its factory in Parkside, and it's a must-do for anyone with a sweet tooth. You can choose whether to take a guided tour, or make your own way around, to see the chocolatiers in action. Watch the chocolate frogs (the best chocolate frogs in the world), truffles, and bars roll off the production line, and – if you're lucky – score some chocolate seconds. You don't need to book, so it's a flexible option to fill a gap in your itinerary. Access to the factory is challenging for people using mobility aids, so it's best to check in with staff at the Visitor's Centre; if a tour doesn't suit your needs, you can still pick up some delicious goodies from the accessible souvenir shop. Give the Great Ocean Road a go If you're driving your own vehicle, or you've arranged for an accessible car rental , you can spend a lovely day or two heading down the Great Ocean Road. Take your time travelling from surf haven Torquay to the charming town of Allansford, and make the most of every opportunity to stop and check out the postcard-worthy views. Gaze out at the 12 Apostles, let the kids burn off some energy at the inclusive Port Campbell Playground, and savour the sensory haven of Stevensons Falls, all for free. There's plenty of accessible accommodation en route, too, if you're looking for somewhere to spend the night. Look in at the library Bookworm or not, you're sure to find something of interest at the State Library Victoria. The building holds more than two million books, as well as museum-worthy exhibitions (such as Ned Kelly's armour), free events and workshops, cafes and afternoon teas, and more. Access is excellent throughout, with lifts to all levels, complimentary wheelchairs to borrow, assistive technology workstations, reading assistance tools, and hearing loops. There's even a designated Access & Inclusion Librarian, available to assist visitors with disabilities and connect them to resources. Best of all, aside from the occasional ticketed event, it's all completely free. Have fun at Federation Square Free live music, outdoor cinema screenings, festivals, installations, exhibitions, meditation and tai chi – what more could you ask for? Federation Square is a hub for the culture that makes Melbourne marvellous, and a gateway to the arts precinct of the city. It's located directly across from Flinders Street Station, and 'open' 24 hours a day. A marked access path runs through the Square from Swanston Street, with lift access to the Atrium, the Edge, and the River Terrace. Recent upgrades have added a Changing Places facility and Hearing Loop technology for visitors. Explore with your ears One of our favourite accessibility apps, VacayIt , now offers free audio guides to many of Tasmania 's most popular attractions. Each guide provides a rich and detailed description of the full range of sensory experiences, from vibrant sunsets on the coast to the towering trees of Tasmania's forests. VacayIt provides both audio files and complete transcripts, all completely compatible with assistive technology. You can cruise the Gordon River, taste something tantalising at Furneaux Distillery, explore the Bay of Fires, learn the rich history of Port Arthur, and so much more. Take a TrailRider out for the day Tasmania might be a small island, relatively speaking, but there's lots of natural trails and wilderness to explore. The Tasmania Parks & Wildlife Service provides a TrailRider , free of charge, to allow people to access areas previously unreachable without full mobility. Book the TrailRider ahead of time and collect it from the Mount Field National Park Visitor Centre when you arrive. One of the most magical experiences can be had on the Tall Trees loop, a 1km track that takes you around the tallest flowering plants in the world. The trees you'll see there can reach 100m in height, and some have been growing since Abel Tasman first sighted Tasmania in 1642. If you're travelling solo, or you'd prefer not to transfer to the TrailRider, there are other paths accessible for standard mobility equipment, like the Russell Falls track. Peek in on the penguins The Friends of Burnie Penguins volunteers offer visitors a free guided tour of the Little Fairy Penguin colony, and it's a must for all animal lovers. You'll get a close-up view of the penguin families at every stage of life, including the baby chicks lovingly reared by their adorable parents. The guides will explain the daily activities of their charges, answer any questions you might have, and help you get the best views and a few Insta-worthy photos (without flash). The Penguin Observation Centre is accessible via the city boardwalk, and the viewing area is level and suitable for wheelchairs. It's best to arrive just before dusk as the penguins come ashore, every night from 1 October-31 March. Learn the law of the land Of course, the Australian Capital Territory is built around the nation's capital, Canberra , the centre of our political system. Parliament House will be a fascinating experience for anyone who's curious about the laws that govern our day-to-day lives and the history of our federal government. Entry is free, and the building is open year-round (9am-6pm on non-sitting days, 9am-5pm on days when parliament is sitting). The free Heart of the House guided tour will introduce visitors to the architecture and history of the building, and highlights of the political events that take place inside. All public areas are accessible, and there are complimentary wheelchairs available from the Information Desk in the Marble Foyer. Contemplate and commemorate at the War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is perhaps not the cheeriest attraction in Canberra, but it's still a fascinating and moving experience for visitors. The Memorial combines a shrine, a world-class museum, and an extensive archive. Contemplate the sacrifice of soldiers, learn about the ceremonial customs of the Australian military, and look up information about your ancestors who served. Lift access is available between the Galleries, wheelchairs available for loan from the Information Desk, and there are video-guided Auslan tours of the Memorial available ($10 p.p.). Entry is free, though it is recommended that you pre-book your timed ticket online to guarantee entry. The Last Post Ceremony takes place at 4.30pm, with the last entry at 4.00pm. Go (Cockington) Green! Cockington Green is a quaint and quirky attraction on the outskirts of Canberra that will delight the whole family. A whole town of meticulously crafted miniature buildings is laid out across beautifully landscaped gardens, with lots of treasures to discover. Wide paved paths let you wander or wheel through with ease, and the displays are at a perfect viewing height. There's a licensed Garden Cafe on site, free barbecues if you'd like to make your own lunch, and two gift shops to score a souvenir. An adult ticket is $25 at time of writing, but there are senior and family discounts available. This story first appeared on Travel Without Limits and has been reproduced here with permission.Words That Leave a Ragged Edge

Arkansas visits skidding Miami in battle of veteran coachesFollowing is a summary of current world news briefs. Israel pounds southern Lebanon and Beirut outskirts, killing five medics Israeli forces pounded southern Lebanon and the outskirts of the capital Beirut on Friday, killing at least five medics, and ground troops clashed with Hezbollah fighters in the south. Israel has pushed on with its intense military campaign against the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, tempering hopes that efforts by a U.S. envoy will lead to an imminent ceasefire. Ukraine steps up air defence development in response to Russian missile deployment, Zelenskiy says President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that Ukraine was working on developing new types of air defence to counter "new risks" following Russia's deployment of a new medium-range missile in the 33-month war. Zelenskiy, in his nightly video address, said testing a new weapon for purposes of terror in another country was an "international crime" and issued a new call for a world-wide "serious response" to keep Russia from expanding the war. Bolsonaro's coup indictment postponed by Brazil's top prosecutor, sources say Brazil's top public prosecutor is not likely to issue any indictments until next year for former President Jair Bolsonaro, members of his government and military officers who allegedly planned a coup after his 2022 election defeat, four sources told Reuters. That is because General Prosecutor Paulo Gonet is planning to merge three Federal Police investigations into Bolsonaro's actions against Brazil's democratic system and produce one single global indictment against him, they said. Russia says Kyiv returned 46 civilians taken to Ukraine after incursion Russia said on Friday that Ukraine had returned 46 Russian citizens who were taken there after Ukrainian forces seized a chunk of Russia's western Kursk region in August. "The painstaking and lengthy negotiations for the return of our fellow countrymen to their homeland have brought results," Kursk regional governor Alexei Smirnov wrote on his Telegram channel. "They are receiving all necessary assistance." Analysis-Calls for minister's firing could tip Israel into constitutional crisis A petition by a group of non-governmental organizations for the Supreme Court to order the dismissal of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has caused a rift in Benjamin Netanyahu's government and could plunge Israel into a constitutional crisis. In a letter to Netanyahu last week, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara asked the prime minister to consider firing the minister, citing evidence that he allegedly interfered directly in police operations and politicized promotions within the force, threatening its status outside politics. Analysis-Putin sends a missile message to the West: 'Back off' Vladimir Putin's hypersonic missile carried a simple message to the West over Ukraine: back off, and if you don't, Russia reserves the right to hit U.S. and British military facilities. Russia fired a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile known as "Oreshnik", or Hazel Tree, at Ukraine on Thursday in what Putin said was a direct response to strikes on Russia by Ukrainian forces with U.S. and British missiles. Trump expected to pick Bessent to be US treasury secretary, sources say President-elect Donald Trump is expected to pick prominent investor Scott Bessent to take on the role of U.S. Treasury secretary, sources told Reuters on Friday, putting him at the helm of a cabinet position with vast influence over economic, regulatory and international affairs. One source briefed by the Trump transition team and a donor briefed on the plans told Reuters of Trump's intention to pick Bessent. The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Putin says Russia will keep testing new missile in combat President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia would keep testing its new Oreshnik hypersonic missile in combat and had a stock ready for use, while Ukraine said it was already at work to develop air systems to counter the weapon. Putin was speaking a day after Russia fired the new intermediate-range weapon into Ukraine for the first time, a step he said was prompted by Ukraine's use of U.S. ballistic missiles and British cruise missiles to hit Russia. Trump may seek dismissal of hush money case, sentencing delayed Donald Trump may seek dismissal of the criminal case in which he was convicted in May of 34 felony counts involving hush money paid to a porn star, a judge ruled on Friday, while also indefinitely delaying Trump's sentencing in light of his victory in the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election. The sentencing had been scheduled to take place next Tuesday. Little hope in Gaza that arrest warrants will cool Israeli onslaught Gazans saw little hope on Friday that International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Israeli leaders would slow down the onslaught on the Palestinian territory, where medics said at least 24 people were killed in fresh Israeli military strikes. In Gaza City in the north, an Israeli strike on a house in Shejaia killed eight people, medics said. Three others were killed in a strike near a bakery and a fisherman was killed as he set out to sea. In the central and southern areas, 12 people were killed in three separate Israeli air strikes. (This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Packham resigns as RSPCA president after animal cruelty claims at approved farmsRemember in when Dorothy stepped out of her sepia world and into a land of vibrant color? That same wonderment is what you'll be feeling when you upgrade from your crusty cookware to a spiffy new set of pots and pans. But not just any set will do — you want kitchenware that's durable, easy to clean, easy to use and looks good. Hybrid Cookware Set, 6 Pieces Hybrid Perfect Pots & Pans Set, 12 Pieces HexClad Damascus Steel Knife Set, 7 Pieces Hybrid Pot Set with Lids, 6 Pieces Salt and Pepper Grinder Set HexClad 1-Quart Hybrid Stainless Steel Pot HexClad 12-Inch Hybrid Nonstick Wok Not sure of where to look? In the words of Gordon Ramsay, "Don't get your knickers in a twist!" The celebrity chef is a fan of , the brand behind the cookware "cooks to absolute, utter perfection." 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Your search for the perfect stocking stuffer ends here (though no shame if you want to snag it for yourself!). Each grinder in this pair boasts 10(!) settings so you can make your seasonings as coarse or fine as you'd like, and they're designed to work quickly. Speedy sprinkling at its sleekest. "I love that they have a bottom on them so I don't have salt and pepper crumbs on my countertop!" wrote a customer. "I also love that I can grind salt and pepper into the bottom and easily scoop out the amount I need with a measuring spoon. They look nice too." Need some single pieces? We found a few HexClad deals at Amazon too: Every home cook needs a trusty saucepan for soups, rice and, yes, sauce. This one features aluminum sandwiched between stainless steel for expert heat conduction and distribution, and its nonstick interior makes it a breeze to clean. "Love, love, love it!" exclaimed a . "Very aesthetically pleasing, even cooking and easy to clean. I've made caramel, forgot soup was cooking ... and the cleanup was so easy. ... This product is such great quality." This top-seller is perfect for stir-frys, has a stay-cool handle to protect your hands while you cook, is compatible with all stovetops and is oven-safe up to 500°F. "I have been using HexClad pans for well over a year now and they look nearly brand new and still perform as if they're brand new," shared a . "They are the toughest pans I've ever owned. I use them every day and enjoy cooking with them. ... The 12-inch wok is my most recent purchase and I've been using it lately to do stir-fry, which is really enjoyable. ... I can't say anything negative about HexClad — they make a perfect product."

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Trump’s social media company is exploring a crypto payment service called TruthFiThe French 75 made quite the impact when it was first introduced, to say the least. I don’t mean the cocktail, I mean the cannon. Before gin and Champagne ever got involved, the French 75, officially “Matériel de 75 mm Mle 1897,” was a 2,700-lb field gun rolled out by the French to fight WWI. It was a closely guarded secret for years, a huge leap forward in artillery technology, capable of hitting a target six miles away with a 13.7-lb shell, and—because of a newly invented hydro-pneumatic recoil mechanism—it could do so 15 times a minute, a combination of accuracy and speed which was at the time completely unheard-of. The weapon became internationally famous among soldiers and civilians alike, and the people of France took it as a point of national pride that the French 75 was the gun that helped seal victory. “This drink is really what won the War for the Allies,” joked , an amusing little cocktail book from 1927 in which the French 75 (the drink) first appears. The weapon had been claimed as the namesake of other cocktails as early as 1915, but the recipe is the one that stuck, and after it was reprinted in Harry Craddock’s famous in 1930 it was as good as law: gin, lemon, sugar and Champagne. Craddock, ever laconic, added by way of etymology just four words: “Hits with remarkable precision.” Made as it originally was—which is to say, a full-strength cocktail into which was mixed a half glass of wine—the French 75 certainly had the firepower to earn its name. These days it’s been appropriated by the brunching set, and the proof in most recipes has been brought down to terrestrial levels. At its best, the French 75 is a bright and charming drink, a crowd pleaser of the highest order, with the kind of protean simplicity that both encourages and rewards experimentation. It is so deeply associated with celebrations that it’s practically intrinsic (just to drink them is, in and of itself, a celebration) and in my personal opinion, is an entire order of magnitude more sophisticated than the cloying obsequiousness of Mimosas. Never mind that through random historical accident the most elegant and well-known sparkling wine cocktail of all time is named after a machined steel anti-personnel cannon from WWI. These things happen sometimes. The recipe has seen some tweaking in the last 90 or so years, and there are three versions worth talking about: 1 oz. London Dry Gin (I use Beefeater) 0.5 oz. lemon juice 0.5 oz. simple syrup (1:1) 3 oz. Champagne Using actual, real here is the quickest and best way to make this drink as good as it can be. Made as above, this is very much a cocktail defined by the sparkling wine (especially as it warms), and Champagne has the depth, power and grace to handle that responsibility. It’s not important what kind of Champagne, there are enough rules in that part of the world that if the bottle says “Champagne,” it’ll be great. Also an option here is a very high-quality Cava or Franciacorta, as long as they’re made in the traditional method and have seen sufficient bottle conditioning. 1 oz. London Dry Gin (I use Beefeater) 0.75 oz. lemon juice 0.75 oz. simple syrup (1:1) 3 oz. sparkling wine While pretty much all modern French 75s come in flutes, both the original and the recipes call for the cocktail to be served in a tall glass, on ice, making this a Tom Collins with sparkling wine instead of soda water. In fact, of the 14 examples of the French 75 I could find in cocktail books from 1927 to 1977 and one in 2002, all but three of them call for the cocktail to be served on ice in a tall glass (the cocktail in flute, it seems, was a product of the ’80s and ’90s, much the same way that era saw everything appended with -tini and poured into a stemmed cone). Ice adds dilution, keeps it ice cold and reduces effervescence, but what it really does is reduce the focus on the sparkling wine. It levels the playing field—while it is obviously still great with Champagne, it’s also exceptional with much more affordable Cava or . 1 oz. VS or VSOP Cognac (I use Pierre Ferrand 1840) 0.75 oz. lemon juice 0.5 oz. simple syrup (1:1) 3 oz. Champagne Though it is very much a gin drink, many modern recipes for the French 75 call for “gin or cognac.” As best I can tell, cognac’s little coup traces back to a 1948 cocktail book called by a rather opinionated tax attorney named David Embury, who’d never tended bar professionally a day in his life, but who nonetheless wrote a book about it. “Gin is sometimes used in place of cognac in this drink,” he writes, “but then, of course, it no longer should be called French.” Whether by skill or by luck, his facile observation led to a wonderful variation of the drink (truth be told, it’s not hard to come up with great variations here, but the Cognac really is good). It’s got a richness and depth that, even in a , shares focus with the bubbles, and coaxes out all the wonderful stone fruit and mineral qualities you maybe didn’t even know your Cognac had in it. This is the house version at the aptly named Arnaud’s French 75 bar in New Orleans, and for good reason: it’s delicious. Note here that Cognac can have a little sweetness in it so I upped the citrus a touch—if you find that a little too lean, feel free to reduce the lemon juice to 0.5 oz. Sign up for . For the latest news, follow us on , , and .

Share Tweet Share Share Email The cryptocurrency market has always been a blend of innovation, opportunity, and high stakes. But what if you could find the gems with the most potential, poised for explosive growth? From Immutable X and VeChain to ChainLink and Ondo, the blockchain world is brimming with coins catering to diverse needs and ecosystems. And then there’s Qubetics ($TICS), a standout name rewriting the narrative with its unique offerings. Whether it’s Immutable X’s scaling solutions, VeChain’s real-world supply chain integrations, or Qubetics’ beginner-friendly development tools, these cryptocurrencies offer promising avenues for growth. By the end of this read, you might just discover why these are the best altcoins to invest in December 2024. 1. Qubetics: Redefining Blockchain Development with QubeQode IDE Qubetics ($TICS) is revolutionising blockchain development, making it accessible for novices and experts alike. Central to its charm is the QubeQode IDE, a state-of-the-art development environment designed for simplicity and efficiency. It offers drag-and-drop components that integrate pre-built blockchain features like user authentication and token management, form-based configuration to simplify smart contract development, and a library of reusable code snippets to empower even the least technical users. This seamless blend of usability and innovation makes Qubetics an indispensable tool for blockchain enthusiasts. Currently, Qubetics is in Presale Phase 14, and the excitement is palpable. With each weekly phase, token prices climb by 10%, and the final stage promises a 20% increase. At just $0.037, with over $7.9M already raised, $TICS tokens offer a staggering ROI potential of 563.81% before the post-presale price of $0.25 is reached. Analysts are even more bullish, forecasting that $TICS could soar to $10 or even $15 after the mainnet launch—equating to potential ROIs of 26,452.57% and 39,728.85%, respectively, for early investors. This is a golden opportunity to secure one of the best altcoins to invest in December 2024 . 2. Immutable X: Scaling Ethereum to New Heights Immutable X is a layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum designed to address the network’s congestion and high transaction costs. It leverages zero-knowledge rollups to enable faster, more cost-effective transactions without compromising on security. With its focus on NFTs and gaming, Immutable X has partnered with several high-profile projects, solidifying its position in the blockchain ecosystem. Immutable X’s unique ability to scale Ethereum while maintaining decentralisation earned it a spot on this list of must-watch cryptocurrencies. 3. VeChain: Transforming Supply Chains with Blockchain VeChain has carved a niche in the blockchain world by focusing on supply chain management and logistics. Its dual-token system powers a robust ecosystem that provides businesses with transparency, traceability, and efficiency. VeChain is at the forefront of real-world blockchain applications, from luxury goods authentication to food safety. This innovative use of blockchain technology in tangible industries is why VeChain stands out among today’s most promising altcoins. 4. ChainLink: Bridging Blockchains and Real-World Data ChainLink is the undisputed leader in decentralised oracle networks, connecting smart contracts to real-world data. Its technology underpins some of the most critical blockchain use cases, from DeFi protocols to insurance and beyond. ChainLink has become an integral part of the blockchain ecosystem by ensuring secure and reliable data feeds. ChainLink has earned its spot on this list because of its indispensable role in enabling smart contracts to interact with external data. 5. Ondo: Simplifying DeFi for Everyone Ondo is an innovative DeFi platform that aims to make decentralised finance accessible to all. It provides structured financial products that cater to both risk-tolerant and risk-averse investors. By offering a unique mix of security and yield optimisation, Ondo is redefining how users interact with DeFi. This ability to bridge the gap between traditional finance and blockchain technology is why Ondo deserves a place on this list. Conclusion: The Best Altcoins to Invest in December 2024 Based on the latest research, Qubetics, Immutable X, VeChain, ChainLink, and Ondo are the best altcoins to invest in December 2024. Each offers unique opportunities, from solving real-world challenges to pioneering blockchain usability. However, the standout in this mix is undoubtedly Qubetics ($TICS). With its groundbreaking QubeQode IDE and a presale offering unmatched ROI potential, Qubetics isn’t just another cryptocurrency; it’s a revolution waiting to unfold. Now is the time to act for those looking to maximise their returns. As the presale phases draw closer to their conclusion, securing $TICS tokens at their current price could be the investment decision that changes your financial future. Don’t wait—be part of the blockchain revolution with Qubetics. For More Information: Qubetics: https://qubetics.com Telegram: https://t.me/qubetics Twitter: https://x.com/qubetics Related Items: Blockchain , Qubetic Share Tweet Share Share Email Recommended for you BTFD Coin’s Super Bonus Offer Garnering Praise While Dogwifhat, Brett Holding Ground As The Best New Meme Coins to Buy This Weekend Top Coins to Buy This Weekend: Qubetics ($TICS) Presale Leads with 630% ROI While Litecoin Accepting LTC, and Arbitrum Expand its Ecosystem Weather-Linked Insurance Payouts: Securing Farmers Against Natural Disasters CommentsBy Blake Brittain (Reuters) – A federal jury in Marshall, Texas, on Friday awarded computer memory company Netlist $118 million in damages from Samsung Electronics in a patent lawsuit over technology for improving data processing in high-performance memory products. The verdict follows a $303 million verdict against Samsung for Irvine, California-based Netlist in a related case last year. Netlist also won $445 million from chipmaker Micron in May in a separate lawsuit over some of the same patents. Spokespeople for Samsung and Netlist did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Friday verdict. The jury also determined that Samsung’s infringement was willful, which could lead to a judge increasing the award by up to three times. Netlist sued Samsung in 2022, alleging that the Korean tech giant’s memory modules used in cloud computing servers and other data-intensive technology infringed its patents. Netlist said its innovations increase the power efficiency of memory modules and enable users to “derive useful information from vast amounts of data in a shorter period.” Samsung denied the allegations, arguing that the patents were invalid and that its technology worked differently than Netlist’s inventions. Samsung has also filed a related lawsuit in Delaware federal court accusing Netlist of breaking an obligation to offer fair licenses for technology required to comply with international standards. (Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Jonathan Oatis) Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content. var ytflag = 0;var myListener = function() {document.removeEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);lazyloadmyframes();};document.addEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);window.addEventListener('scroll', function() {if (ytflag == 0) {lazyloadmyframes();ytflag = 1;}});function lazyloadmyframes() {var ytv = document.getElementsByClassName("klazyiframe");for (var i = 0; i < ytv.length; i++) {ytv[i].src = ytv[i].getAttribute('data-src');}} Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );India vs Australia 4th Test, Day 3 Live Updates: Focus and pressure both will be on the pair of Rishabh Pant (6 not out) and Ravindra Jadeja (4 not out) on Saturday when the duo will resume the Indian innings at the score of 164 for 5 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Both Pant and Jadeja are new to the crease, having faced only 7 balls each. On the other hand, Australia will be keen to take some early wickets on the third day to put more pressure on India. On Day 2, India were in control at one stage, having scored 153 for 2, but Yashasvi Jaiswal 's run-out helped Australia bounce back in the game. Given the hosts scored a massive total of 474 in their first innings, India still trail the side by 310 runs. ( Live Scorecard ) Here are the Live Score and Updates of India vs Australia 4th Test Day 3: December 28 2024 04:32 (IST) IND vs AUS Live: Welcome! Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the third day of the India vs Australia 4th Test. It's the Moving Day! The course that this match will take might well be decided today! facebook twitter Copy Link

Ghana, Syria and the LessonsSouth Korea's President Yoon reverses martial law after lawmakers defy him

By MARY CLARE JALONICK and MATT BROWN WASHINGTON (AP) — Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Defense Department, said he had a “wonderful conversation” with Maine Sen. Susan Collins on Wednesday as he pushed to win enough votes for confirmation. He said he will not back down after allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct. Related Articles National Politics | Donald Trump will ring the New York Stock Exchange bell. It’ll be a first for him National Politics | The Trump and Biden teams insist they’re working hand in glove on foreign crises National Politics | ‘You don’t know what’s next.’ International students scramble ahead of Trump inauguration National Politics | Trump is threatening to raise tariffs again. Here’s how China plans to fight back National Politics | Trump won’t be able to save the struggling US beef industry Collins said after the hourlong meeting that she questioned Hegseth about the allegations amid reports of drinking and the revelation that he made a settlement payment after being accused of a sexual assault that he denies. She said she had a “good, substantive” discussion with Hegseth and “covered a wide range of topics,” including sexual assault in the military, Ukraine and NATO. But she said she would wait until a hearing, and notably a background check, to make a decision. “I asked virtually every question under the sun,” Collins told reporters as she left her office after the meeting. “I pressed him both on his position on military issues as well as the allegations against him, so I don’t think there was anything that we did not cover.” The meeting with Collins was closely watched as she is seen as more likely than most of her Republican Senate colleagues to vote against some of Trump’s Cabinet picks. She and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a fellow moderate Republican, did not shy from opposing Trump in his first term when they wanted to do so and sometimes supported President Joe Biden’s nominees for the judicial and executive branches. And Hegseth, an infantry combat veteran and former “Fox & Friends” weekend host, is working to gain as many votes as he can as some senators have expressed concerns about his personal history and lack of management experience. “I’m certainly not going to assume anything about where the senator stands,” Hegseth said as he left Collins’ office. “This is a process that we respect and appreciate. And we hope, in time, overall, when we get through that committee and to the floor that we can earn her support.” Hegseth met with Murkowski on Tuesday. He has also been meeting repeatedly with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, a military veteran who has said she is a survivor of sexual assault and has spent time in the Senate working on improving how attacks are reported and prosecuted within the ranks. On Monday, Ernst said after a meeting with him that he had committed to selecting a senior official to prioritize those goals. Republicans will have a 53-49 majority next year, meaning Trump cannot lose more than three votes on any of his nominees. It is so far unclear whether Hegseth will have enough support, but Trump has stepped up his pressure on senators in the last week. “Pete is a WINNER, and there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!” Trump posted on his social media platform last week.Market for Pete Alonso sluggish as Mets progress through Winter Meetings

Many of us take navigation for granted; when we're lost, we simply pull out our phones and open Google Maps to find where we are. You could even ask Siri to give you directions if you don't want to be bothered getting your iPhone out of your pocket. You don't need Wi-Fi or a mobile data connection to find your location, either. As long as your phone has a pre-loaded map of your area, it can accurately place you anywhere on Earth so long as you can see the sky. So, whether you're walking in an urban jungle, trekking through the woods, climbing a mountain, sailing the seas, or even soaring through the sky at 35,000 feet, your phone can tell you where you are. This technological marvel that allows us to find our way around is powered by GPS, and it's available in every smartphone, many tablets, several car models, and even smartwatches. But what exactly is GPS, and how does it know where you are? GPS means Global Positioning System, and it uses a constellation of satellites to help you locate where you are. The U.S. military developed a satellite-based navigation system called Transit in the 1960s to help its missile submarines get accurate fixes, allowing them to launch their deadly nuclear payloads with extreme accuracy. But in 1973, the Department of Defense launched the current Global Positioning System, eventually supplanting Transit in 1995, making GPS one of the military inventions we use daily . However, the key event that led the U.S. government to make GPS available for civilian use was the tragic shooting down of the Korean Airlines 007 in 1983. Investigations revealed that the pilots used the wrong navigation mode, and since they had no access to GPS, they could not accurately determine where they were, causing them to stray into Soviet Air Space. Because of this, they were shot down by a Soviet fighter plane, resulting in the loss of 269 passengers. This event pushed President Reagan to make GPS available for civilian use. While it formerly required dedicated receivers to use, technological advancements have allowed even the smallest of devices, like smartphones and smartwatches, to come equipped with it. When combined with other technologies like Bluetooth, it can make navigation and location extremely accurate — much like how an Apple AirTag works . Before satellites were invented, mariners used celestial navigation to find their place on Earth. They used a tool like a sextant to measure the angle of a certain star above the horizon, marking the exact time that they saw that star, knowing that they were sitting along the circumference of a circle with the star at its center. They could then repeat this procedure for two more stars, and they'll be able to find their exact location on the globe. GPS navigation uses the same principle, but instead of relying on stars or the sun to find our location, our devices use satellite signals. We currently have over 30 GPS satellites orbiting the Earth at around 20,200 kilometers or about 12,550 miles above us, with at least four always visible from any point on Earth's surface. Your device would look for at least four satellites to find its position. Once it detects the signals from these satellites, it can automatically compute its location, giving you almost real-time information with an accuracy of 16 to 100 feet or 5 to 30 meters. One thing you might notice is that while celestial navigation uses three reference points to help you find an accurate position, GPS uses four satellites. The sailors of old typically used flat maps to find their position, so three reference points would suffice. Since GPS devices move in three dimensions, you need a fourth satellite so that you can find your precise location in space. Aside from that, your device also needs precise time-keeping to ensure that you get the most accurate signal from just three satellites. This means that our phones must be equipped with an atomic clock if we want to know that we're getting accurate directions. Since these devices are expensive and typically thicker than a phone, it would be inconvenient to have them in our device. Instead, GPS uses a fourth satellite to verify the information that you receive, allowing you to get high accuracy. As the name suggests, GPS is a complete system, meaning it has many different segments. While we only think of the satellites (Space Segment) and our own devices (User Segment) as the parts of GPS, it also has one other important segment: the Control Segment. The Control Segment is a network of ground facilities that monitor the 31 GPS satellites currently orbiting the Earth to ensure that they're exactly where we need them to be and that they're sending the correct data. This is also the team that maintains the satellites, ensuring that they're all up to date, and maneuvers them to the correct location as needed, ensuring that all GPS users will see a minimum of four satellites all the time. This segment consists of a master control station at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado, an alternate master control station at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, 11 command and control antennas, and 16 monitoring sites located globally. The 16 monitoring sites track and measure the GPS satellites and forward the data to the master control stations. This is then processed by the master control station, and, if it needs to send out a command, it does so via the 11 command and control antennas. This ensures that GPS is working 24/7, ensuring accurate and precise navigation data for all of its users. While GPS is synonymous with satellite navigation today, it's not the only one that provides this service. The generic term for GPS is actually GNSS, or global navigation satellite system, and other countries and organizations have built their own. China has the BeiDou Navigation System (BNS), which was formally commissioned in 2020 and has 35 satellites, while the EU has Galileo, which was launched in 2016 and has over 24 satellites at the moment. Russia also has GLONASS, which is called Globalnaya Navigazionnaya Sptunikovaya Sistema in Russian or Global Navigation Satellite System in English. Aside from these, India also has the India Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), which is now renamed to Navigation Indian Constellation (NavIC) and has seven satellites to cover the Indian Region. Japan also launched the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), with four satellites in 2018, and currently has more than seven satellites, all focused on East Asia and Oceania. All these GNSS services could work on the same phone, provided that your manufacturer supports it. 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PHILADELPHIA and NEW YORK , Dec. 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FS KKR Capital Corp. (NYSE: FSK) today announced that it has completed its previously announced offering of an additional $100 million in aggregate principal amount of its 6.125% notes due 2030 (the "Notes"). The Notes will be a further issuance of, and form a single series with, the $600 million aggregate principal amount of 6.125% Notes due 2030 that FSK issued on November 20, 2024 , increasing the outstanding aggregate principal amount of the series to $700 million . BofA Securities, Inc., BMO Capital Markets Corp., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, KKR Capital Markets LLC, SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc., and Truist Securities, Inc. are acting as joint book-running managers for this offering. FSK intends to use the net proceeds of this offering for general corporate purposes, including potentially repaying outstanding indebtedness under credit facilities and certain notes. This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the Notes, nor shall there be any offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. About FS KKR Capital Corp. FSK is a leading publicly traded business development company (BDC) focused on providing customized credit solutions to private middle market U.S. companies. FSK seeks to invest primarily in the senior secured debt and, to a lesser extent, the subordinated debt of private middle market companies. FSK is advised by FS/KKR Advisor, LLC. About FS/KKR Advisor, LLC FS/KKR Advisor, LLC (FS/KKR) is a partnership between FS Investments and KKR Credit that serves as the investment adviser to FSK and other business development companies. FS Investments is a global alternative asset manager dedicated to delivering superior performance and innovative investment and capital solutions. The firm manages over $83 billion in assets for a wide range of clients, including institutional investors, financial professionals and individual investors. FS Investments provides access to a broad suite of alternative asset classes and strategies through its best-in-class investment teams and partners. With its diversified platform and flexible capital solutions, the firm is a valued partner to general partners, asset owners and portfolio companies. FS Investments is grounded in its high-performance culture and guided by its commitment to building value for its clients, investing in its colleagues and giving back to its communities. The firm has more than 500 employees across offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia and is headquartered in Philadelphia . KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management as well as capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR's insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR's investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. Forward-Looking Statements and Important Disclosure Notice This announcement may contain certain forward-looking statements, including statements with regard to future events or future performance or operations of FSK. Words such as "believes," "expects," "projects," and "future" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Certain factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include changes in the economy, risks associated with possible disruption in FSK's operations or the economy generally due to terrorism, geo-political risks, natural disasters or pandemics such as COVID-19, future changes in laws or regulations and conditions in FSK's operating area and the price at which shares of FSK's common stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Some of these factors are enumerated in the filings FSK makes with the SEC. FSK undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contact Information: Investor Relations Contact Anna Kleinhenn Anna.Kleinhenn@fsinvestments.com FS Investments Media Team Melanie Hemmert Melanie.Hemmert@fsinvestments.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fsk-completes-public-offering-of-100-million-6-125-unsecured-notes-due-2030--302339667.html SOURCE FS Investments

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how to win in jili super ace online By RANDALL CHASE, Associated Press DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has reaffirmed her ruling that Tesla must revoke Elon Musk’s multibillion-dollar pay package Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick on Monday denied a request by attorneys for Musk and Tesla’s corporate directors to vacate her ruling earlier this year requiring the company to rescind the unprecedented pay package. McCormick also rejected an equally unprecedented and massive fee request by plaintiff attorneys , who argued that they were entitled to legal fees in the form of Tesla stock valued at more than $5 billion. The judge said the attorneys were entitled to a fee award of $345 million. The rulings came in a lawsuit filed by a Tesla stockholder who challenged Musk’s 2018 compensation package. McCormick concluded in January that Musk engineered the landmark pay package in sham negotiations with directors who were not independent. The compensation package initially carried a potential maximum value of about $56 billion, but that sum has fluctuated over the years based on Tesla’s stock price.The standard Lorem Ipsum passage, used since the 1500s "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum." Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC "Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?" Thanks for your interest in Kalkine Media's content! To continue reading, please log in to your account or create your free account with us.GCAA hosts third meeting of Qatar-EU Joint Committee



Delaware judge reaffirms ruling that invalidated massive Tesla pay package for Elon MuskPINE BLUFF, Ark. (AP) — Quintell Quinn ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns to lead Texas Southern to a 31-23 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday. Quinn scored on a 32-yard run to open the scoring midway through the first quarter, and his 75-yard touchdown run gave Texas Southern a 17-13 lead with 6:59 remaining in the third. A little more than three minutes later, Jace Wilson threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Trenton Leary that stretched the Tigers' lead to 24-13. Athean Renfro added 55 yards rushing with a 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter for Texas Southern (5-6, 4-4 Southwestern Athletic Conference). DJ Stevenson threw a touchdown pass and an interception for Arkansas-Pine Bluff (3-8, 2-6). Abdulbasit Osholake had an 80-yard pick-6 that tied it 7-all late in the second quarter for the Lions. ___ Get alerts on the latest AP Top 25 poll throughout the season. Sign up here ___ AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

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North Texas coach Eric Morris felt like it was time to shake things up late in his second season guiding the Mean Green’s program just a few days ago. Morris fired his defensive coordinator, returned to the basics in practice and challenged his players to have fun again. None of those changes made the impact UNT was looking for, at least not when it comes to the bottom line. The Mean Green still couldn’t get over the hump in a close game and fell 40-28 to East Carolina on Saturday at DATCU Stadium, their fifth straight loss UNT got the ball back at its 12-yard line with 3:32 left down 34-28 but couldn’t do anything with it. Chandler Morris’ pass to Landon Sides on fourth-and-8 from the UNT 30-yard line was broken up by Gavin Gibson. ECU took over and iced the game with a Rahjai Harris 7-yard touchdown run. The game was UNT’s first with linebackers coach Brian Odom serving as the team’s interim defensive coordinator after Eric Morris parted ways with Matt Caponi. UNT coughed up a 21-point first half in its home finale. The Mean Green headed into their game at Memphis needing just one more win to become bowl eligible back on Oct. 19. UNT missed out on that opportunity and four more like it since. The Mean Green have just one opportunity left next week in its regular season finale at Temple. UNT came up with a series of huge plays defensively in the first half and ran out to a 21-7 lead at the break. Kaitin Houser hit Anthony Smith over the middle on the third play of the game. Smith appeared as if he might score before cornerback Ridge Texada ran him down and forced a fumble the linebacker Chavez Brown recovered in the end zone. UNT safety Quinton Hammonds intercepted a Houser pass a short time later to set up a 37-yard scoring drive Chandler Morris capped with a 4-yard touchdown strike to Blair Conwright. The Mean Green came up with another key stop early when defensive lineman Terrell Dawkins cut down ECU running back Landon Montgomery on a carry up the middle on fourth-and-1 from the UNT 14. Morris threw three touchdown passes in the first half, including a 3-yard strike to Blair Conwright that put UNT up 21-0. ECU didn’t get on the board until Rahjai Harris scored on a 1-yard run with four seconds left in the half. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request.LOS ANGELES (AP) — Adrian Kempe and Quinton Byfield scored in the second period, and the Los Angeles Kings beat the Seattle Kraken 2-1 on Saturday. David Rittich made 19 saves for the Kings, who improved to 6-2-1 at home. Kempe and Byfield scored 1:44 apart in the second period. Byfield buried a sharp-angle slap shot on a power play while dropping to a knee. It was his 98th career point in 200 games. Brandon Montour got the Kraken on the board with 1:26 left in the game. He converted a long shot with Joey Daccord off for another skater, but Los Angeles held on. Daccord finished with 19 stops for Seattle. Kraken: Jordan Eberle will miss at least three months after undergoing surgery on his pelvis. He had six goals and five assists in 17 games before he got hurt against Chicago on Nov. 14. Kings: The power play had been in a 1-for-16 rut (6.25%) over the previous six games before Byfield found the net. It was the Kings' lone opportunity with the man-advantage. After following its 1-0 loss to Buffalo on Wednesday with a fourth straight period of extreme low-event hockey, Los Angeles created a lot more activity and offense to start the second and generate its two goals. The Kings know how to close out games, improving to 9-0-1 when leading after two periods. The Kraken visit Anaheim on Monday, and the Kings play at San Jose on Monday. AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhlBorussia Dortmund moved into the top eight of the Champions League standings with a 3-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb, where Jamie Gittens, Ramy Bensebaini and Serhou Guirassy got on the scoresheet. Monaco dropped to eighth after suffering their first loss of the league phase, 3-2 at home to Benfica. Despite having Wilfried Singo sent off just prior to the hour mark, the French side took the lead for a second time via Soungoutou Magassa in the 67th minute, only for late goals from Arthur Cabral and Zeki Amdouni to give Benfica all three points. Lille, in 12th, have the same amount of points as Monaco and Villa thanks to a 2-1 win at Bologna, with Ngal’Ayel Mukau notching a brace. PSV Eindhoven, now 18th, produced a dramatic late turnaround to beat 10-man Shakhtar Donetsk 3-2 at home. The visitors led 2-0 through Danylo Sikan and Oleksandr Zubkov before having Pedrinho sent off in the 69th minute, and PSV then hit back with three goals in the closing stages, Malik Tilman scoring in the 87th and 90th and Ricardo Pepi then notching the winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time, the first time any team has come from two down to win so late in the game in the tounrament’s history. Red Star Belgrade registered their first win of the league phase by thrashing Stuttgart 5-1, as did Sturm Graz, beating Girona 1-0.

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René Bennett | (TNS) Bankrate.com If you’re an iPhone user, you might not realize that you already have access to Apple Cash. It’s a digital cash card that’s built into Apple devices and can be found in the default Wallet app. (Note: You must link an eligible debit card to use this service.) The main function of Apple Cash is to make it easier for Apple device users to send money to one another, including sending money through the iMessage app. But Apple Cash is more than just a peer-to-peer (P2P) payment service — it can be used to shop online, in stores or to make in-app purchases. Apple Cash is a convenient way to transfer money between friends and family. Once it’s set up, a user can simply open the iMessage app and send money to a contact through their chat. It’s also useful for those who use Apple Pay, a separate service that allows Apple device users to make contactless payments with any linked card, including an Apple Cash card. Here are some important things to know about setting up and using Apple Cash. Apple Cash is a digital cash card that’s stored in the Wallet app of Apple devices, and it can be used for making P2P payments, as well as purchases through Apple Pay. When you receive money from another Apple Cash user, that money appears in your Apple Cash balance. The balance can then be spent or transferred to a linked bank account or debit card. Sending money to peers with Apple Cash can be done either directly from the digital Apple Cash card (in the Wallet app) or through the iMessage app. You can send or receive anywhere between $1 and $10,000 per message. The money shows up on the recipient’s Apple Cash card instantly, but it may take from one to three days for the balance to be transferred to a bank account. Instant transfers to a bank account are possible, but it comes with a 1.5% fee. There’s also an option to set up Apple Cash Family for children who are under 18 years old. This option limits the amount a child can send to $2,000 per message. Those younger than 18 also cannot add money to their Apple Cash card from a bank account; rather, their balance only grows when they receive money from another Apple Cash user. Apple Cash is a digital card within your Wallet that allows you to spend your Apple Cash online, in stores and in apps as well send and receive money. Apple Pay, however, allows you to make purchases using any credit card or debit card you have stored in your Wallet — including Apple Cash. With Apple Pay, you add credit and debit cards to your Wallet and then have the ability to pay right with your phone (or other Apple product). To set up Apple Cash, you’ll need three things: —A compatible Apple device. —Two-factor authentication enabled for your Apple ID (this can be done in Settings). —An eligible debit card to load funds onto the Apple Cash card. In the Settings app, you can turn on Apple Cash in the Wallet and Apple Pay section. Tap on the Apple Cash card icon and follow the instructions on the screen. You’ll be asked to agree to the terms and conditions, after which your device will set up Apple Cash for you. The Apple Cash card, once set up, can be found in your device’s Wallet app. If you want to set up Apple Cash Family, you’ll first need to have Family Sharing turned on, which can be done in Settings. The family organizer can add children to Apple Cash in the Family Sharing section of Settings. You’ll need to have a debit card linked to your digital Wallet to add money to an Apple Cash card. You can add a debit card to Wallet in the same place where you set up Apple Cash — the Wallet and Apple Pay section of Settings. Once a debit card is linked to your Wallet, open Wallet and tap on the Apple Cash card. Then, tap the More button (an icon with three dots). This will open a page where you can see your Apple Cash balance, add money and transfer funds to a bank account. Tap Add Money and enter the amount you’d like to add (the minimum is $10). You’ll be asked to confirm which debit card you want to use to fund the Apple Cash balance, and then the money is added to the Apple Cash card. There are two ways to send a payment to someone using Apple Cash: directly from your Wallet or in the iMessage app. Both the sender and recipient need Apple Cash to send or receive money. To send money from Wallet, simply tap the Apple Cash card in Wallet and then tap Send. Type in the contact name or phone number of the recipient. Enter the amount you’d like to send (between $1 and $10,000), then review the payment and confirm it with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. In iMessage, open the conversation with who you’d like to send money to, or start a new one. Tap on the app button, which appears next to the type bar, and then tap on the Apple Cash icon. You’ll be prompted to enter an amount (between $1 and $10,000). Once you’ve reviewed the amount, tap Send and confirm with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. The first time money is sent to someone, the recipient will need to accept the payment within seven days for it to go through. After the first instance, payments are automatically accepted. If you’re using Apple Cash to make a purchase either online or in a store, you’ll need to pay using Apple Pay. To request money from your iPhone, open the conversation in the Messages app. Tap the plus icon, followed by Apple Cash. Then, tap Request. Tap the send button to send your payment request. Once the request is sent, the person you sent it to can confirm or change the amount they send to you. You can also request money from your Apple watch. Open your messages app, choose a conversation, tap the plus icon and then choose Apple Cash. Once you enter the amount you are requesting, swipe left on the Send button. Tap Request. As you start to accumulate money on the Apple Cash card, you may want to move it to a debit card or a bank account . This can be done by going to the same place where you added funds to the card, by clicking the icon with three dots next to your digital card. Enter an amount to be transferred, then tap Next. You’ll be asked whether you want to do an instant transfer (for a 1.5% fee) or a transfer in one to three business days for free. After making a selection, the screen will instruct you to set up a bank account if you don’t already have one set up. You’ll confirm the payment, and the transfer is initiated. Instant transfers can only be made to an eligible debit card, not a bank account. Money is sent within 30 minutes when you select instant transfer. —Zelle: If your bank is offers Zelle, it might be a good idea to take advantage of the P2P payment service. Zelle can be accessed directly from your bank’s mobile app, and it allows you to send instant transfers at no extra cost. —Venmo: Anyone can use Venmo, as long as they’ve downloaded the app. Unlike Apple Cash or Zelle, it’s a standalone P2P payment app. Venmo comes with a social element — users can follow each other and add fun emojis to their payments, although they can also keep their account activity private. —PayPal: This P2P payment service is a good option if you want to send money internationally. It also offers a PayPal Debit card, which, like the Apple Cash card, can be used to make purchases online or in stores. —Samsung Pay Cash: Samsung device users can use this option instead of Apple Cash. Similar to Apple Cash, it is a digital wallet that you can access from a Samsung mobile device. However, to take full advantage of Samsung Pay Cash, users will need to undergo an extra registration process to upgrade to a Full Card Account. Apple Cash makes it easy for Apple device users to send money to each other. Users can simply tap the Apple Cash icon in their text messages to send money through iMessage. It can also be used as an extra repository for spending money and can be used for purchases anywhere Apple Pay is accepted. With that said, only Apple device users can send and receive money using Apple Cash, so those looking for a more universal payment service may want to consider other P2P payment apps . ©2024 Bankrate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Hallmark Channel is ready to deck the halls — and our screens — with plenty of new . From now until the weekend before Christmas Day, we're getting three new holiday movies on the Hallmark Channel, premiering every Friday, Saturday and Sunday respectively. Plus, new premieres every Thursday as part of the Hallmark Mysteries' series, and starting in November, new movies streaming every Thursday as part of Hallmark+'s new This week, we're getting Hallmark Mystery's on Thursday, followed by Friday's (featuring a cameo by Donna Kelce!), Saturday brings the sequel to , aptly titled . Sunday closes things out with Keep reading to learn more about these new Hallmark Christmas movies, find out where to watch Hallmark movies without cable and more. An NYC book editor gets the chance to spend a month running a bookstore in a small town, where she meets, and butts heads with, the bookstore's owner's handsome son. Julie Gonalo and Brendan Penny star in which premieres Thursday, Nov. 21 on Hallmark Mystery and will be available to stream on Peacock. Over the holidays, an ER doctor and EMT try to make their relationship work. Sara Canning and Ser'Darius Blain star in , which premieres Friday, Nov. 22 on Hallmark Channel and will stream for three days following its premiere on Peacock. In this sequel to Three Wise Men and a Baby, the story picks up five years later with the Brenner brothers having to step in to take over Thomas's holiday school musical. Paul Campbell, Tyler Hynes, Andrew Walker and Margaret Colin star in , which premieres Saturday, Nov. 23, on Hallmark Channel and will be available to stream on Peacock for three days following its premiere. A newly engaged couple gets put through the wringer when their family decides they need to go to marriage bootcamp over the holidays. Madeleine Arthur, Robert Bazzocchi and Eric Close star in , which premieres this Sunday, Nov. 24 on Hallmark Channel and streaming on Peacock. If you’re already a cable subscriber and are looking for more ways to watch the Hallmark Channel, you should be able to log in with your cable credentials on and tune into a free livestream of the new Christmas movies as they premiere. Don’t have cable? Here’s what we recommend subscribing to if you want the Hallmark Channel: Watch Hallmark Channel DirecTV Entertainment Watch Hallmark Channel Fubo TV Pro Watch the Hallmark Channel Hulu + Live TV Watch Hallmark Channel Frndly TV Watch Hallmark Channel with Sling TV Orange + Lifestyle Extra Sling TV Orange + Lifestyle Extra Watch the Hallmark Channel Philo (Peacock) A $8/month ad-supported Peacock subscription lets you stream select Hallmark holiday movies for three days after they premiere on Hallmark Channel. Plus, you'll get access to thousands of hours of shows and movies, including beloved sitcoms such as and every and select live sports and other events airing on NBC (like this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. For $14/month you can also upgrade to an ad-free subscription which includes live access to your local NBC affiliate (not just during designated sports and events) and the ability to download select titles to watch offline. Hallmark+ is Hallmark's newest streaming platform, featuring all-new holiday movies and exclusive original programming. You can subscribe monthly for $7.99 per month, or annually for $79.99. You can also try the platform out for free first. Premiere times are 8 p.m. ET/PT on the Hallmark Channel unless otherwise noted. Sara Canning, Ser'Darius Blain; cameo by Donna Kelce In the lead-up to Christmas, emergency room doctor Hannah Michaels (Canning) juggles her demanding job and a budding romance with EMT Wes Sullivan (Blain) in Philadelphia. They spend time together as Wes helps her become more acquainted with the sights, sounds, and tastes of Philadelphia, it's clear that they're starting to fall for each other. As the local first responders balance duty with holiday celebrations, they come together to face challenges, support each other and find moments of joy. Paul Campbell, Tyler Hynes, Andrew Walker, Margaret Colin The story begins five years later with the Brenner brothers preparing for another memorable Christmas. In a crazy turn of events, possibly brought on accidentally by the brothers themselves, the director of Luke's (Walker) son Thomas' (Miles Marthaller) school holiday musical steps down. Luke is desperate to make his son's stage dreams come true, so he enlists the help of his brothers, Taylor (Hynes) and Stephan (Campbell). Meanwhile, the trio navigates to meet their mom Barbara's (Colin) new boyfriend and the brothers grapple with their feelings about this relationship. In true Brenner brother fashion, they are all in for a Christmas they will never forget. Madeleine Arthur, Robert Bazzocchi, Eric Close When Celeste (Arthur) gets engaged to Jason (Bazzocchi) after just a few months of dating, her father, and the couple's would-be officiant, Pastor Mark (Close), insists on putting them through a pre-wedding "bootcamp" filled with Christmas-themed challenges. As the couple grows stronger through the festive activities, Celeste considers following her dreams in the fashion industry. Meanwhile, Pastor Mark learns to trust his daughter's choices, leading to a heartwarming holiday season for the whole family. Rachel Boston, Pascal Lamothe-Kipnes, Tanner Novlan, Matthew James Dowden, Max Lloyd-Jones Three adult siblings (Lamothe-Kipnes, Dowden and Lloyd-Jones) return to their childhood home at Christmas to honor their late grandmother's wishes and try to agree on new leadership for the family's company. Enter Annie Merkel (Boston) — also known as Mrs. Miracle — who poses as an estate planner and uses her special brand of Christmas magic to help the family find common ground and rekindle their bonds. As the siblings try to sort things out, Charlotte (Lamothe-Kipnes) also finds herself reconnecting with Austin (Novlan), the manor's caretaker and her first love. Premieres 6 p.m. ET/PT Eva Bourne, Chandler Massey, Katherine Barrell Workaholic lawyer Lucy Miller (Bourne) is celebrating her promotion alone on Christmas Eve when a mysterious rideshare experience transports her back to 1999. Reliving the holiday with her mom, sister and best friend — not to mention her high school crush — Lucy gets a second chance to understand where her relationships went wrong. Will this magical journey help her rewrite her future or leave her destined to be alone? Premieres 8 p.m. ET/PT Ashley Greene, Wes Brown, Danny Pellegrino Rose (Greene) is a Chicago-based interior designer, whose brother Sal (Pellegrino) is responsible for a Christmas charity house flipback in their suburban Ohio hometown. When a budget crisis puts this important project in danger, Rose reluctantly returns during the holidays to try to save the day. Not ready to face the ghosts of her past, Rose plans to get in, get it done, and get out ASAP. But before she knows it, she is face-to-face with Brysen (Brown), her brother's best friend, contractor, and who just so happens to be the bane of Rose's youth. With the help of friends and family, and buoyed by the season of giving, the trio figures out a way to work together for this worthy cause. As Rose works, she discovers unexpected love and deeper purpose along the way. Premieres 6 p.m. ET/PT Meghan Ory, John Reardon Logline: When Beatrice (Ory) reluctantly joins her best friend on a trip to the enchanting Christmasland, she's skeptical of the holiday magic surrounding them. But as she experiences festive traditions and meets a charming stranger named Ethan (Reardon), she begins to question what's real and what's part of the experience. In the end, Christmasland helps Beatrice rediscover hope, love, and the magic of new beginnings. Premieres 8 p.m. ET/PT Hunter King, Tyler Hynes, Ed Begley Jr., Richard Riehle, Diedrich Bader, Christine Ebersole, Megyn Price; cameos by Jenna Bush Hager, Donna Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid and players Trey Smith, Mecole Hardman Jr., Clyde Edwards-Helaire, George Karlaftis Alana Higman (King) is sure that her family's lifelong history as Kansas City Chiefs superfans makes them a frontrunner to win the team's "Fan of the Year" contest. Derrick (Hynes), Director of Fan Engagement, is tasked with evaluating how Alana and her family stack up against the other two finalists. As the pair spends time together, it's clear there's a spark between them but when her grandfather's (Begley Jr.) vintage Chiefs good-luck winter hat goes missing, Alana begins to doubt everything she believed about fate, and destiny and even questions her future with Derrick — unless, that is, a little Christmas magic can throw a Hail Mary. Premieres 6 p.m. ET/PT Kim Matula, Beau Mirchoff, Nichole Sakura Inspired by her father's acclaimed legacy in dog sled racing, Anya (Matula) decides to follow in his footsteps. After his passing, she heads to Finland to participate in the 40th annual Joulurauha race, her father's final race where he fell short of the victory. Following an injury to her lead dog during the qualifying race, Anya finds herself partnered with a new canine companion owned by journalist and former racer Cole (Mirchoff), who aims to pen a story about her journey. Struggling to build trust with her new dog and facing her father's rival, Monty (Páll Sigþór Pálsson), Anya must navigate many challenges as she strives to win the race. Premieres 8 p.m. ET/PT Lacey Chabert, Kristoffer Polaha An archeologist (Chabert) and her ex-husband (Polaha), an expert in ancient Norse languages, are sent to Iceland at Christmastime to search for the legendary treasure of the Yule Lads. When others join in the hunt, the pair find themselves swept into a thrilling adventure as they race to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. Ali Skovbye, Derek Klena, Erica Durance Vi (Skovbye), better known as Princess Violet of Wingravia, adores the privileges of being a royal if none of the responsibilities. After being disappointed by Vi one time too many, the Queen (Durance) decides to test her daughter's mettle once and for all and issues an ultimatum: Vi must pass a vigorous leadership boot camp in Colorado or lose the throne to her uncle. At boot camp, Vi and her fellow cadets are put through a rigorous grind under the uncompromising supervision of Captain Ryan Douglas (Klena). Maggie Lawson, Janel Parrish Emily (Lawson) has always dreamed of creating the perfect Christmas, meticulously planning every detail year after year, only to feel like she's falling short. Hoping to bring her family closer together, she makes a wish for a holiday as picture-perfect as the ones she sees in a made-for-TV holiday movie. To her shock, Sugarplum (Parrish), the film's relentlessly optimistic main character, magically steps off the screen to make Emily's wish come true — whether she's ready for it or not. As Sugarplum applies her movie-world rules to real life, Emily gets caught up in the possibility of finally achieving a flawless family Christmas. But when Sugarplum's magical fixes start to backfire one by one, Emily begins to question what an ideal holiday really is. With time running out, Emily and Sugarplum find themselves on a heartwarming adventure — one that might just amount to an entirely different kind of Christmastime perfection. Emily Arlook, Evan Roderick, Barbara Niven Leah Meyer (Arlook) is a bonafide lover of Christmas — the trees, the ornaments, the eggnog! But she has always admired the holiday from afar because she's Jewish. Though her family celebrates Hanukkah, Leah has longed to experience a traditional Christmas. When her boyfriend Graham (Roderick) invites her to spend the holidays with his classic Connecticut family, she eagerly accepts. Excited to dive into the quintessential Christmas she's always dreamed of, Leah quickly discovers that fitting in with Graham's uptight family and his not-so-welcoming mom (Niven) is easier said than done. As holiday traditions clash and awkward moments pile up, it is not quite the cozy Christmas that she expected. Stacey Farber, Daren Kagasoff, Marc Summers One week before Hanukkah, corporate lawyer Tory (Farber) finds herself unexpectedly unemployed and questioning the career she's dedicated years to. As she helps her Bubby prepare for the holiday, she embarks on a quest across Chicago to find the last box of coveted Hanukkah candles. Her search leads her to Rocky's, an old town bar, where she encounters Jay (Kagasoff), a charming doctor from Florida, his grandfather Sam (Summers) and a cast of quirky regulars who make her rethink everything. Torn between keeping her job loss a secret and embracing a newfound sense of belonging, Tory ends up bartending at Rocky's, transforming it into the vibrant "Hanukkah on the Rocks" celebration. Through festive food, drinks, and games, she revitalizes the bar, bonds with Jay, and finds the courage to pursue her true calling. As Tory navigates the holiday, she learns that sometimes a detour can lead you exactly where you're meant to be, lighting the way to a future filled with joy, romance, and self-discovery. Kimberley Sustad, Benjamin Ayres Kate North (Sustad) finds herself reluctantly taking over her father's once-acclaimed and now-struggling Santa School. In the weeks leading up to Christmas and the school's next session, Kate and her new co-worker Dan (Ayres) discover who they believe to be the real Santa Claus, lost and without his memories after his sled steered off course and crashed near the school. They decide to help him remember who he is by inviting him to participate in the intense Santa training program. There's a lot at stake this year with Kate's school needing to best the rival St. Nicholas School or be forced to close their doors, and Nick (Santa Claus) needs to remember who he is, or the fate of Christmas might be at stake. Brooke D'Orsay, John Brotherton A DaySpring movie. Abby Marshall (D'Orsay), once celebrated for her role as an inspirational mother on TV, is finding her real life in shambles after dealing with a scandal. She retreats to a luxury Vermont resort for Christmas only to find herself without a room due to a booking mishap. All the local hotels are booked up due to a rare astronomical event — a beautiful star said to mirror the Star of Bethlehem will appear on Christmas Eve. Thankfully, Abby finds a room at a quaint B&B, owned by Tom Maguire (Brotherton), who is also a high school astronomy teacher. Since his wife's passing, Tom has taken on a lot of extra responsibilities, including running the inn and directing the local church's Christmas pageant. Empathizing with Tom, Abby offers to help with the pageant and various activities around the inn and finds herself enjoying both the projects and Tom's company. Through newfound community, family, and love, Abby discovers that hope sometimes comes in the most unexpected ways. Jessica Lowndes, the winner of Hallmark+'s Finding Mr. Christmas Mia (Lowndes), a meticulous web page editor for the Seattle Tourism Board, finds herself unexpectedly navigating the holidays alone. As the only one working, she's drawn into an unusual encounter when she finds a stray dog. Unsure how to handle the situation, she crosses paths with Max (the to-be-determined winner of Finding Mr. Christmas), a dog shelter owner. Mia agrees to let Max's ailing dog find solace with her newfound companion, in exchange for Max showing her the hidden gems of Seattle. Through their journey together, they both step out of their comfort zones, discovering new perspectives and forming a meaningful connection. Premiere times are 8 p.m. ET/PT on the Hallmark Mystery channel unless otherwise noted below. Julie Gonzalo, Brendan Penny A successful New York City book editor (Gonzalo), who is losing touch with her passion after a few setbacks this year, learns she was chosen to run a bookstore in the small town of Saint Ives for the month of December. While realizing a childhood dream and butting heads with the handsome son (Penny) of the bookstore owners, she comes to realize that her love for bringing out the creativity of others is still her true calling, and untapped talent (and love) can be found anywhere... even in the writings of a cranky business-minded man, especially at Christmas. Heather Hemmens, Marco Grazzini Emily (Hemmens) is always reluctant to return home to her family's animal rescue ranch — but when her mother passes away, her brother Nick requests her help organizing the annual Christmas Carnival. When she arrives, she discovers Nick's friend, Luke (Grazzini), staying at the ranch — and that Luke was once a successful artist who worked with light. Though initially reluctant to collaborate, Emily and Luke work hard to pull off the best, most light-filled carnival the town has ever seen, a healing celebration of Emily's mother's legacy and the magic of Christmas — and along the way feel sparks of romance as radiant as the lights themselves. Erica Cerra, Mark Ghanimé, Vanessa Burghardt, Dorian Giordano Melanie's (Cerra) 17-year-old autistic daughter Jenny (Burghardt) is a senior in high school and looking forward to college. After a bad experience in her junior year, Jenny is not interested in attending her final Christmas dance before graduating. Melanie decides to surprise Jenny by getting involved in the school's planning committee to create a welcoming dance for all students. Meanwhile, Jenny and her friends secretly plan their own party, in part to honor Melanie. Melanie works with Jenny's literature teacher (Ghanimé) on the dance and starts to fall for him while Jenny develops something special with a new classmate (Giordano) at school. When their secrets snowball, however, their plans begin to drive a wedge between the usually tight-knit mother and daughter at the holidays. Mallory Jansen, Dan Jeannotte Maggie (Jansen) has been trying for years to break in as a singer-songwriter. Now faced with the challenges of new apps and social media, Maggie fears she's outdated and unable to compete in a tech-savvy world. While helping her parents on their farm at Christmastime, she meets Archer (Jeannotte), an entrepreneur who has come back to town to spend the holidays alone. Archer is developing large-scale apps and is a tech enthusiast. At first, Maggie blames him for all of her songwriting woes. To her surprise, he encourages her to get back in touch with music that really matters and write from the heart; tech can be used in a supportive role to help her achieve her dreams without replacing the art of songwriting. Archer is dealing with the loss of family, and through her tight family bonds, Maggie helps Archer find ways of moving beyond years of family feuding. In this holiday romance, Maggie and Archer both discover there is merit in preserving the tried and true while making room for new ideas and methods to bring people together and help make dreams come true. Italia Ricci, Michael Xavier Michelle (Ricci) is the dreamer of her family, always brimming with imaginative ideas to make the world a better place. This Christmas, her sister Keri desperately needs a new home, and Michelle hatches a creative plan to help. Starting with just a Christmas stocking, she sets out to trade her way up to something far greater — a house for Keri. While Keri dismisses it as a far-fetched idea, local reporter Dan (Xavier) is intrigued. Assigned to cover Michelle's story, Dan follows her closely, and as her plan gains attention, he starts to see the world through her hopeful eyes. As Michelle and Dan grow closer, so do their feelings for each other. But when it seems her plan has failed and she fears it has ruined her relationship with Keri, Michelle is ready to give up. It's Dan's love and belief in her that reignites hope just when she needs it most. The below films will stream on Hallmark+. Natalie Hall, Alec Santos Tina Mitchell (Hall), a successful business owner, meets a charming guy Michael (Santos), just as her holiday season heats up with the town's Christmas gala and her busy store, All Wrapped Up. When the gala is threatened by a Scrooge-like estate owner planning to sell the venue, rumors begin to threaten Tina and Michael's newfound connection. As Tina works to keep the venue's doors open for the gala, she just might unwrap a new chapter in her life, filled with love and holiday cheer. Kathryn Davis, Nathan Witte Mia (Davis), an accountant at All Wrapped Up, is stunned when local celebrity Beau Cavannagh (Witte), who looks just like her favorite romance novel hero, enters her life. Despite her doubts, Beau, an heir to a wealthy family, proves his feelings for her are real, even as his family disapproves. Mia soon finds herself swept up in a fairytale romance that's straight out of her dreams. Ashley Newbrough, Torrance Coombs Lily (Newbrough), the marketing guru of All Wrapped Up, believes the universe guides us to our destiny and it appears that it's guiding her toward a celebrity realtor. However, when she feels an unexpected spark with journalist Sean Whitlock (Coombs) during an interview, her heart starts to question everything. As her chemistry with Sean grows, Lily begins to wonder if he's the true match she's been waiting for all along. Cindy Busby, Jake Epstein Olivia (Busby), the gift-wrapping expert at All Wrapped Up, makes a delivery to a remote cabin only to find her ex-boyfriend Benjamin (Epstein) on the other side of the door. After the pair have a minor spat, an unexpected storm traps them together. Neither of them is happy to be forced to spend time together. However, as talk turns to shared memories, old feelings and warmth begin to resurface and they are left wondering if it's possible to get it right a second time. Jonathan Bennett, Annabelle Bourke, Corey Cott, Sarah Dugdale, Shannon Kook, Vincent Rodriguez III In 1951, a doctor (Cott) wants to make the holiday special for his worried wife (Bourke) before he is shipped out to serve in Korea, but when she suffers a minor fracture to her arm, his carefully planned-out Christmas Eve plans are upended. In 2003, a newly married couple (Dugdale and Kook) who are always in agreement about everything hosts two sets of in-laws for Christmas Eve for the first time and find that they may not have had as much in common as they thought they did. And in 2024, a couple (Bennett and Rodriguez III) tries to arrange special Christmas surprises for each other but keeping them a secret may be harder than they thought. Benjamin Ayres, Catherine Bell, James Denton, Erica Durance, Julie Gonzalo, Ryan Rottman In 1960, Eli (Ayres) and Penny (Durance) take in Eli's curmudgeonly father, Walter (Serge Houde), and are forced to navigate some tricky family waters to get through the holidays while also working on a Christmas-themed time capsule for son Alex's school project. In 1998, we see Regina (Bell) and Nelson's (Denton) first meeting: stuck together when a blizzard strands Nelson in Regina's home on Christmas Eve. In 2015, Jessie (Gonazlo) faces a big challenge while planning her sister's last-minute Christmas Eve wedding — the officiant is Tim (Rottman), her high school sweetheart, whom she hasn't seen in almost 20 years. John Brotherton, Erin Cahill, Brooke D'Orsay, Chelsea Hobbs, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Sam Page, Matt Dusk In 1966, single guy David's (Hollingsworth) plans for a simple Christmas are dashed when his neighbor Stephanie (Hobbs) arrives with news that she won a contest to have Tommy Saunders' (Dusk) Christmas Eve TV special broadcast live from her house — but used his address. In 1981, John (Brotherton) and Lizzie (Cahill) learn that this will be their last Christmas on Cherry Lane after John receives a job offer in Michigan and Lizzie finds out she's pregnant. In 2000, best friends Matt (Page) and Rebecca (D'Orsay) find unexpected feelings developing as they try to find out who is behind a series of Christmas-themed random acts of kindness.Ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner, jailed for sexting child, eyes political comeback in New York City Council

GOP Armed Services chair criticizes ban on gender-affirming care for minors in NDAA

By MICHELLE L. PRICE and ROB GILLIES NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s recent dinner with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his visit to Paris for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral were not just exercises in policy and diplomacy. They were also prime trolling opportunities for Trump. Related Articles National Politics | Trump names Andrew Ferguson as head of Federal Trade Commission to replace Lina Khan National Politics | Biden says he was ‘stupid’ not to put his name on pandemic relief checks like Trump did National Politics | Biden issues veto threat on bill expanding federal judiciary as partisan split emerges National Politics | Trump lawyers and aide hit with 10 additional felony charges in Wisconsin over 2020 fake electors National Politics | After withdrawing as attorney general nominee, Matt Gaetz lands a talk show on OANN television Throughout his first term in the White House and during his campaign to return, Trump has spun out countless provocative, antagonizing and mocking statements. There were his belittling nicknames for political opponents, his impressions of other political figures and the plentiful memes he shared on social media. Now that’s he’s preparing to return to the Oval Office, Trump is back at it, and his trolling is attracting more attention — and eyerolls. On Sunday, Trump turned a photo of himself seated near a smiling first lady Jill Biden at the Notre Dame ceremony into a social media promo for his new perfume and cologne line, with the tag line, “A fragrance your enemies can’t resist!” The first lady’s office declined to comment. When Trudeau hastily flew to Florida to meet with Trump last month over the president-elect’s threat to impose a 25% tax on all Canadian products entering the U.S., the Republican tossed out the idea that Canada become the 51st U.S. state. The Canadians passed off the comment as a joke, but Trump has continued to play up the dig, including in a post Tuesday morning on his social media network referring to the prime minister as “Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada.” After decades as an entertainer and tabloid fixture, Trump has a flair for the provocative that is aimed at attracting attention and, in his most recent incarnation as a politician, mobilizing fans. He has long relished poking at his opponents, both to demean and minimize them and to delight supporters who share his irreverent comments and posts widely online and cheer for them in person. Trump, to the joy of his fans, first publicly needled Canada on his social media network a week ago when he posted an AI-generated image that showed him standing on a mountain with a Canadian flag next to him and the caption “Oh Canada!” After his latest post, Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller said Tuesday: “It sounds like we’re living in a episode of South Park.” Trudeau said earlier this week that when it comes to Trump, “his approach will often be to challenge people, to destabilize a negotiating partner, to offer uncertainty and even sometimes a bit of chaos into the well established hallways of democracies and institutions and one of the most important things for us to do is not to freak out, not to panic.” Even Thanksgiving dinner isn’t a trolling-free zone for Trump’s adversaries. On Thanksgiving Day, Trump posted a movie clip from “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” with President Joe Biden and other Democrats’ faces superimposed on the characters in a spoof of the turkey-carving scene. The video shows Trump appearing to explode out of the turkey in a swirl of purple sparks, with the former president stiffly dancing to one of his favorite songs, Village People’s “Y.M.C.A.” In his most recent presidential campaign, Trump mocked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, refusing to call his GOP primary opponent by his real name and instead dubbing him “Ron DeSanctimonious.” He added, for good measure, in a post on his Truth Social network: “I will never call Ron DeSanctimonious ‘Meatball’ Ron, as the Fake News is insisting I will.” As he campaigned against Biden, Trump taunted him in online posts and with comments and impressions at his rallies, deriding the president over his intellect, his walk, his golf game and even his beach body. After Vice President Kamala Harris took over Biden’s spot as the Democratic nominee, Trump repeatedly suggested she never worked at McDonalds while in college. Trump, true to form, turned his mocking into a spectacle by appearing at a Pennsylvania McDonalds in October, when he manned the fries station and held an impromptu news conference from the restaurant drive-thru. Trump’s team thinks people should get a sense of humor. “President Trump is a master at messaging and he’s always relatable to the average person, whereas many media members take themselves too seriously and have no concept of anything else other than suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome,” said Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director. “President Trump will Make America Great Again and we are getting back to a sense of optimism after a tumultuous four years.” Though both the Biden and Harris campaigns created and shared memes and launched other stunts to respond to Trump’s taunts, so far America’s neighbors to the north are not taking the bait. “I don’t think we should necessarily look on Truth Social for public policy,” Miller said. Gerald Butts, a former top adviser to Trudeau and a close friend, said Trump brought up the 51st state line to Trudeau repeatedly during Trump’s first term in office. “Oh God,” Butts said Tuesday, “At least a half dozen times.” “This is who he is and what he does. He’s trying to destabilize everybody and make people anxious,” Butts said. “He’s trying to get people on the defensive and anxious and therefore willing to do things they wouldn’t otherwise entertain if they had their wits about them. I don’t know why anybody is surprised by it.” Gillies reported from Toronto. Associated Press writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

Roblox chief product officer Manuel Bronstein sells $2.35 million in stockIf you’re an iPhone user, you might not realize that you already have access to Apple Cash. It’s a digital cash card that’s built into Apple devices and can be found in the default Wallet app. (Note: You must link an eligible debit card to use this service.) The main function of Apple Cash is to make it easier for Apple device users to send money to one another, including sending money through the iMessage app. But Apple Cash is more than just a service — it can be used to shop online, in stores or to make in-app purchases. Apple Cash is a convenient way to transfer money between friends and family. Once it’s set up, a user can simply open the iMessage app and send money to a contact through their chat. It’s also useful for those who use Apple Pay, a separate service that allows Apple device users to make with any linked card, including an Apple Cash card. Here are some important things to know about setting up and using Apple Cash. Apple Cash is a digital cash card that’s stored in the Wallet app of Apple devices, and it can be used for making P2P payments, as well as purchases through Apple Pay. When you receive money from another Apple Cash user, that money appears in your Apple Cash balance. The balance can then be spent or transferred to a linked bank account or debit card. with Apple Cash can be done either directly from the digital Apple Cash card (in the Wallet app) or through the iMessage app. You can send or receive anywhere between $1 and $10,000 per message. The money shows up on the recipient’s Apple Cash card instantly, but it may take from one to three days for the balance to be transferred to a bank account. Instant transfers to a bank account are possible, but it comes with a 1.5% fee. There’s also an option to set up Apple Cash Family for children who are under 18 years old. This option limits the amount a child can send to $2,000 per message. Those younger than 18 also cannot add money to their Apple Cash card from a bank account; rather, their balance only grows when they receive money from another Apple Cash user. Apple Cash is a digital card within your Wallet that allows you to spend your Apple Cash online, in stores and in apps as well send and receive money. Apple Pay, however, allows you to make purchases using any credit card or debit card you have stored in your Wallet — including Apple Cash. With Apple Pay, you add credit and debit cards to your Wallet and then have the ability to pay right with your phone (or other Apple product). To set up Apple Cash, you’ll need three things: —A compatible Apple device. —Two-factor authentication enabled for your Apple ID (this can be done in Settings). —An eligible debit card to load funds onto the Apple Cash card. In the Settings app, you can turn on Apple Cash in the Wallet and Apple Pay section. Tap on the Apple Cash card icon and follow the instructions on the screen. You’ll be asked to agree to the terms and conditions, after which your device will set up Apple Cash for you. The Apple Cash card, once set up, can be found in your device’s Wallet app. If you want to set up Apple Cash Family, you’ll first need to have Family Sharing turned on, which can be done in Settings. The family organizer can add children to Apple Cash in the Family Sharing section of Settings. You’ll need to have a linked to your digital Wallet to add money to an Apple Cash card. You can add a debit card to Wallet in the same place where you set up Apple Cash — the Wallet and Apple Pay section of Settings. Once a debit card is linked to your Wallet, open Wallet and tap on the Apple Cash card. Then, tap the More button (an icon with three dots). This will open a page where you can see your Apple Cash balance, add money and transfer funds to a bank account. Tap Add Money and enter the amount you’d like to add (the minimum is $10). You’ll be asked to confirm which debit card you want to use to fund the Apple Cash balance, and then the money is added to the Apple Cash card. There are two ways to send a payment to someone using Apple Cash: directly from your Wallet or in the iMessage app. Both the sender and recipient need Apple Cash to send or receive money. To send money from Wallet, simply tap the Apple Cash card in Wallet and then tap Send. Type in the contact name or phone number of the recipient. Enter the amount you’d like to send (between $1 and $10,000), then review the payment and confirm it with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. In iMessage, open the conversation with who you’d like to send money to, or start a new one. Tap on the app button, which appears next to the type bar, and then tap on the Apple Cash icon. You’ll be prompted to enter an amount (between $1 and $10,000). Once you’ve reviewed the amount, tap Send and confirm with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. The first time money is sent to someone, the recipient will need to accept the payment within seven days for it to go through. After the first instance, payments are automatically accepted. If you’re using Apple Cash to make a purchase either online or in a store, you’ll need to pay using Apple Pay. To request money from your iPhone, open the conversation in the Messages app. Tap the plus icon, followed by Apple Cash. Then, tap Request. Tap the send button to send your payment request. Once the request is sent, the person you sent it to can confirm or change the amount they send to you. You can also request money from your Apple watch. Open your messages app, choose a conversation, tap the plus icon and then choose Apple Cash. Once you enter the amount you are requesting, swipe left on the Send button. Tap Request. As you start to accumulate money on the Apple Cash card, you may want to move it to a debit card or a . This can be done by going to the same place where you added funds to the card, by clicking the icon with three dots next to your digital card. Enter an amount to be transferred, then tap Next. You’ll be asked whether you want to do an instant transfer (for a 1.5% fee) or a transfer in one to three business days for free. After making a selection, the screen will instruct you to set up a bank account if you don’t already have one set up. You’ll confirm the payment, and the transfer is initiated. Instant transfers can only be made to an eligible debit card, not a bank account. Money is sent within 30 minutes when you select instant transfer. —Zelle: If your bank is offers Zelle, it might be a good idea to take advantage of the P2P payment service. Zelle can be accessed directly from your bank’s mobile app, and it allows you to send instant transfers at no extra cost. —Venmo: Anyone can use Venmo, as long as they’ve downloaded the app. Unlike Apple Cash or Zelle, it’s a standalone P2P payment app. Venmo comes with a social element — users can follow each other and add fun emojis to their payments, although they can also keep their account activity private. —PayPal: This P2P payment service is a good option if you want to send money internationally. It also offers a PayPal Debit card, which, like the Apple Cash card, can be used to make purchases online or in stores. —Samsung Pay Cash: Samsung device users can use this option instead of Apple Cash. Similar to Apple Cash, it is a digital wallet that you can access from a Samsung mobile device. However, to take full advantage of Samsung Pay Cash, users will need to undergo an extra registration process to upgrade to a Full Card Account. Apple Cash makes it easy for Apple device users to send money to each other. Users can simply tap the Apple Cash icon in their text messages to send money through iMessage. It can also be used as an extra repository for spending money and can be used for purchases anywhere Apple Pay is accepted. With that said, only Apple device users can send and receive money using Apple Cash, so those looking for a more universal payment service may want to consider . ©2024 Bankrate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations defines hunger as an uncomfortable or painful physical sensation caused by insufficient consumption of dietary energy. The World Bank says that the hunger rate in Africa are especially acute, with one out of five people going hungry each day. For more than a decade, conflict and economic hardship have remained the key drivers of hunger in Nigeria. Ongoing violence causes disruptions in markets and farming, severely limiting people’s ability to earn income and forcing families to leave their homes. In the 2024 Global Hunger Index (GHI), Nigeria ranks 110th out of the 127 countries surveyed. With a score of 28.8% in the 2024 GHI, the country’s level of hunger is severe. Global Hunger Index is a tool for comprehensively measuring and tracking hunger at global, regional, and national levels. GHI scores are based on four components: undernourishment- the share of the population with insufficient caloric intake; child stunting :-the share of children who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic under nutrition; child wasting: the share of children under age five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute under nutrition; child mortality: the share of children who die before their fifth birthday, partly showing a fatal mix of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments. Based on the values of the four indicators, GHI score is calculated on a 100-point scale, reflecting the severity of hunger, where 0 is the best possible score (no hunger) and 100 is the worst. Each country’s GHI scores is classified by severity, from low to extremely alarming. Recently a joint report of the Federal government and the United Nations says Nigeria faces one of its worst hunger crises with more than 33.1 million expected to be food insecure next year, compared with 24.8 million this year. Finance Minister, Wale Edu, says 5 million households in Nigeria have so far received cash handout of 25,000 Naira each as part of the government’s program to help the most vulnerable families. But Chi Lael, the World Food Program spokesperson in Nigeria, reportedly said that ‘’economic decisions felt like a direct attack on people’s wallet, hitting hardest every time they try to buy food.’’ Nigeria’s food insecurity has been worsened by economic sanctions imposed against Russia by Western countries since its military operation in Ukraine. In fact the world food security is currently in danger due to the disruption of international supplies by the United States and its allies through the imposition of various prohibitions. The European Union, EU, import tariff is common to all EU countries but the rates of duty differ from one kind of import to another depending on what they are, and where they come from, depending on the economic sensitivity of the products. Unfair business practices such as illegal contacts and agreements, price fixing and market sharing, though prohibited under EU competition rules, remain rampant. In her mission letter recently to the incoming EU Competition Commissioner-designate, Teresa Ribera, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, begins with ‘’Europe needs a new approach to competition policy – one that is more supportive of companies to scale up their global markets...’’ Observers say In noting that competition policy should help companies scale up, Von der Leyen seems to advocate a significant departure from past practice and favor more state intervention in markets, and support for industrial policy that allows anticompetitive mergers that could threaten food security. For Africa, a new colonial threat stares in the form of European dominance of African policy on genetically modified organisms, GMO, and its imposition of GMO production standards. A coalition of academics and civil society organizations has said GMO foods pose severe risks to human health and the environment with a claim MO crops have created novel and alarming problems, including genetic contamination and uterine fibroids in women of young ages. In Nigeria uterine fibroids reportedly account for 3.2-7.8% of gynecological cases and 68.1% of hysterectomy cases. Across the country farmers have complained that GMOs reduce productivity in the second planting season, meaning farmers can not replant these seeds but must purchase new ones to plant in the next planting season. . Analysts see the EU position on GMOs as jihad against Africa’s food and environmental health, and against its Agricultural sovereignty . In like manner their proliferation of military bases on the continent today may have been based on self-serving and hypocritical motives. But this is not receiving attention in parts of Africa. Global food insecurity has been worsened by Western sanctions against Russia because Nigerians industry reportedly accounts for around 20% of the global fertilizer trade market, thereby ensuring food security for 1.5 billion people in the world. The West’s sanctions policy is resulting in food becoming scarcer and costing more in Africa and other developing nations as Brazil which depend on Russian products to produce soy bean oil. According to projections by the World Bank, the current world food shortages would certainly lead to large political crises, with the proliferation of civil wars and armed conflicts over food resources. Now there are far scarier predictions about this problem. Considering a possible situation of generalized famine in emerging countries on all continents, we can be close to some of the greatest cases of political and military instability in history. That is why that President Tinubu must activate all known social safety nets to enable Nigerians survive the current deepening food insecurity in the land now the World Bank has said that Nigerians would wait for 10 to 15 years to reap the benefits of his economic reform.

WASHINGTON — The House shut down Democrats' efforts Thursday to release the long-awaited ethics report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, pushing the fate of any resolution to the yearslong investigation of sexual misconduct allegations into further uncertainty. Matt Gaetz talks before President-elect Donald Trump speaks during an America First Policy Institute gala at his Mar-a-Lago estate Nov. 14 in Palm Beach, Fla. The nearly party-line votes came after Democrats had been pressing for the findings to be published even though the Florida Republican left Congress and withdrew as President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general. Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., was the sole Republican to support the effort. Most Republicans have argued that any congressional probe into Gaetz ended when he resigned from the House. Speaker Mike Johnson also requested that the committee not publish its report, saying it would be a terrible precedent to set. While ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, it is extremely rare. Shortly before the votes took place, Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., who introduced one of the bills to force the release, said that if Republicans reject the release, they will have “succeeded in sweeping credible allegations of sexual misconduct under the rug.” Gaetz has repeatedly denied the claims. Earlier Thursday, the Ethics panel met to discuss the Gaetz report but made no decision, saying in a short statement that the matter is still being discussed. It's unclear now whether the document will ever see the light of day as lawmakers have only a few weeks left before a new session of Congress begins. It's the culmination of weeks of pressure on the Ethics committee's five Republicans and five Democrats who mostly work in secret as they investigate allegations of misconduct against lawmakers. The status of the Gaetz investigation became an open question last month when he abruptly resigned from Congress after Trump's announcement that he wanted his ally in the Cabinet. It is standard practice for the committee to end investigations when members of Congress depart, but the circumstances surrounding Gaetz were unusual, given his potential role in the new administration. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., the committee chairman, said Wednesday that there is no longer the same urgency to release the report given that Gaetz has left Congress and stepped aside as Trump's choice to head the Justice Department. “I’ve been steadfast about that. He’s no longer a member. He is no longer going to be confirmed by the Senate because he withdrew his nomination to be the attorney general,” Guest said. The Gaetz report has also caused tensions between lawmakers on the bipartisan committee. Pennsylvania Rep. Susan Wild, the top Democrat on the panel, publicly admonished Guest last month for mischaracterizing a previous meeting to the press. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing and said last year that the Justice Department’s separate investigation against him into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls ended without federal charges. His onetime political ally Joel Greenberg, a fellow Republican who served as the tax collector in Florida’s Seminole County, admitted as part of a plea deal with prosecutors in 2021 that he paid women and an underage girl to have sex with him and other men. The men were not identified in court documents when he pleaded guilty. Greenberg was sentenced in late 2022 to 11 years in prison. Among President-elect Donald Trump's picks are Susie Wiles for chief of staff, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, former Democratic House member Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration's top diplomat. Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump's running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement. The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man" during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump's plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations. Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show. Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year. Trump tapped Pam Bondi, 59, to be attorney general after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration. She was Florida's first female attorney general, serving between 2011 and 2019. She also was on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Considered a loyalist, she served as part of a Trump-allied outside group that helped lay the groundwork for his future administration called the America First Policy Institute. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. A fierce defender of Trump, she also frequently appears on Fox News and has been a critic of the criminal cases against him. Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda. Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic. She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports. The governor of North Dakota, who was once little-known outside his state, Burgum is a former Republican presidential primary contender who endorsed Trump, and spent months traveling to drum up support for him, after dropping out of the race. Burgum was a serious contender to be Trump’s vice presidential choice this summer. The two-term governor was seen as a possible pick because of his executive experience and business savvy. Burgum also has close ties to deep-pocketed energy industry CEOs. Trump made the announcement about Burgum joining his incoming administration while addressing a gala at his Mar-a-Lago club, and said a formal statement would be coming the following day. In comments to reporters before Trump took the stage, Burgum said that, in recent years, the power grid is deteriorating in many parts of the country, which he said could raise national security concerns but also drive up prices enough to increase inflation. “There's just a sense of urgency, and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration,” Burgum said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as a Democrat, than as an independent, and then endorsed Trump . He's the son of Democratic icon Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated during his own presidential campaign. The nomination of Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services alarmed people who are concerned about his record of spreading unfounded fears about vaccines . For example, he has long advanced the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Scott Bessent, 62, is a former George Soros money manager and an advocate for deficit reduction. He's the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. “This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then. Oregon Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer narrowly lost her reelection bid this month, but received strong backing from union members in her district. As a potential labor secretary, she would oversee the Labor Department’s workforce, its budget and put forth priorities that impact workers’ wages, health and safety, ability to unionize, and employer’s rights to fire employers, among other responsibilities. Chavez-DeRemer is one of few House Republicans to endorse the “Protecting the Right to Organize” or PRO Act would allow more workers to conduct organizing campaigns and would add penalties for companies that violate workers’ rights. The act would also weaken “right-to-work” laws that allow employees in more than half the states to avoid participating in or paying dues to unions that represent workers at their places of employment. Scott Turner is a former NFL player and White House aide. He ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term in office. Trump, in a statement, credited Turner, the highest-ranking Black person he’s yet selected for his administration, with “helping to lead an Unprecedented Effort that Transformed our Country’s most distressed communities.” Sean Duffy is a former House member from Wisconsin who was one of Trump's most visible defenders on cable news. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, sitting on the Financial Services Committee and chairing the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019 for a TV career and has been the host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Before entering politics, Duffy was a reality TV star on MTV, where he met his wife, “Fox and Friends Weekend” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy. They have nine children. A campaign donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Write is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking — a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. Wright also has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change. He said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.” The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. Wright also won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm. Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. President-elect Donald Trump tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump promised to dismantle. McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she expressed support for charter schools and school choice. She served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Brooke Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. She previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Trump chose Howard Lutnick, head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald and a cryptocurrency enthusiast, as his nominee for commerce secretary, a position in which he'd have a key role in carrying out Trump's plans to raise and enforce tariffs. Trump made the announcement Tuesday on his social media platform, Truth Social. Lutnick is a co-chair of Trump’s transition team, along with Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive who previously led Trump’s Small Business Administration. Both are tasked with putting forward candidates for key roles in the next administration. The nomination would put Lutnick in charge of a sprawling Cabinet agency that is involved in funding new computer chip factories, imposing trade restrictions, releasing economic data and monitoring the weather. It is also a position in which connections to CEOs and the wider business community are crucial. Doug Collins is a former Republican congressman from Georgia who gained recognition for defending Trump during his first impeachment trial, which centered on U.S. assistance for Ukraine. Trump was impeached for urging Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden in 2019 during the Democratic presidential nomination, but he was acquitted by the Senate. Collins has also served in the armed forces himself and is currently a chaplain in the United States Air Force Reserve Command. "We must take care of our brave men and women in uniform, and Doug will be a great advocate for our Active Duty Servicemembers, Veterans, and Military Families to ensure they have the support they need," Trump said in a statement about nominating Collins to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. Karoline Leavitt, 27, was Trump's campaign press secretary and currently a spokesperson for his transition. She would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps. Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, was a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. Leavitt worked in the White House press office during Trump's first term before she became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump's choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields. Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party's 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall. “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement. Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions. Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next. Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump's first term, leading the U.S. government's spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. “I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation's highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Kash Patel spent several years as a Justice Department prosecutor before catching the Trump administration’s attention as a staffer on Capitol Hill who helped investigate the Russia probe. Patel called for dramatically reducing the agency’s footprint, a perspective that sets him apart from earlier directors who sought additional resources for the bureau. Though the Justice Department in 2021 halted the practice of secretly seizing reporters’ phone records during leak investigations, Patel said he intends to aggressively hunt down government officials who leak information to reporters. Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency . Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X , “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI.” “We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” he added. During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration's promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration. In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.” Trump has named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband. Carr is a longtime member of the commission and served previously as the FCC’s general counsel. He has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times and was nominated by both Trump and President Joe Biden to the commission. Carr made past appearances on “Fox News Channel," including when he decried Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' pre-Election Day appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” He wrote an op-ed last month defending a satellite company owned by Trump supporter Elon Musk. Trump said Atkins, the CEO of Patomak Partners and a former SEC commissioner, was a “proven leader for common sense regulations.” In the years since leaving the SEC, Atkins has made the case against too much market regulation. “He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, & that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the World. He also recognizes that digital assets & other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The commission oversees U.S. securities markets and investments and is currently led by Gary Gensler, who has been leading the U.S. government’s crackdown on the crypto industry. Gensler, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, announced last month that he would be stepping down from his post on the day that Trump is inaugurated — Jan. 20, 2025. Atkins began his career as a lawyer and has a long history working in the financial markets sector, both in government and private practice. In the 1990s, he worked on the staffs of two former SEC chairmen, Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt. Jared Isaacman, 41, is a tech billionaire who bought a series of spaceflights from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk . He is the founder and CEO of a card-processing company and has collaborated closely with Musk ever since buying his first chartered SpaceX flight. He took contest winners on that 2021 trip and followed it in September with a mission where he briefly popped out the hatch to test SpaceX’s new spacewalking suits. Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump's staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. President-elect Donald Trump says he's chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Trump has expressed skepticism about the Western military alliance for years. Trump said in a statement Wednesday that Whitaker is “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot” who “will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The choice of Whitaker as the nation’s representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. “He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.” Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect's golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump's club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination. Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud." Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee. Trump said Wednesday that he will nominate Gen. Keith Kellogg to serve as assistant to the president and special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues, served as National Security Advisor to Trump's former Vice President Mike Pence. For the America First Policy Institute, one of several groups formed after Trump left office to help lay the groundwork for the next Republican administration, Kellogg in April wrote that “bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to a close will require strong, America First leadership to deliver a peace deal and immediately end the hostilities between the two warring parties.” (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib) Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday. The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah. “Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump's statement said, "and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs. He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population. Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner , was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump's priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump's first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump's policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation's economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security. Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump's policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to "run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump's “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Former Rep. Billy Long represented Missouri in the U.S. House from 2011 to 2023. Since leaving Congress, Trump said, Long “has worked as a Business and Tax advisor, helping Small Businesses navigate the complexities of complying with the IRS Rules and Regulations.” Former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler was appointed in January 2020 by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and then lost a runoff election a year later. She started a conservative voter registration organization and dived into GOP fundraising, becoming one of the top individual donors and bundlers to Trump’s 2024 comeback campaign. Even before nominating her for agriculture secretary, the president-elect already had tapped Loeffler as co-chair of his inaugural committee. Dr. Mehmet Oz, 64, is a former heart surgeon who hosted “The Dr. Oz Show,” a long-running daytime television talk show. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 and is an outspoken supporter of Trump, who endorsed Oz's bid for elected office. Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York. Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It's not clear how the organization will operate. Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” Russell Vought held the position during Trump’s first presidency. After Trump’s initial term ended, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a think tank that describes its mission as “renew a consensus of America as a nation under God.” Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that he tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Vought has also previously worked as the executive and budget director for the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for conservative House Republicans. He also worked at Heritage Action, the political group tied to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Dan Scavino, deputy chief of staff Scavino, whom Trump's transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump's longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president. Scavino had run Trump's social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. James Blair, deputy chief of staff Blair was political director for Trump's 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president. Blair was key to Trump's economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate's “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago. Taylor Budowich, deputy chief of staff Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump's 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president. Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency. Jay Bhattacharya, National Institutes of Health Trump has chosen Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health. Bhattacharya is a physician and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, and is a critic of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He promoted the idea of herd immunity during the pandemic, arguing that people at low risk should live normally while building up immunity to COVID-19 through infection. The National Institutes of Health funds medical research through competitive grants to researchers at institutions throughout the nation. NIH also conducts its own research with thousands of scientists working at its labs in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Marty Makary, Food and Drug Administration Makary is a Johns Hopkins surgeon and author who argued against pandemic lockdowns. He routinely appeared on Fox News during the COVID-19 pandemic and wrote opinion articles questioning masks for children. He cast doubt on vaccine mandates but supported vaccines generally. Makary also cast doubt on whether booster shots worked, which was against federal recommendations on the vaccine. Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, Surgeon General Nesheiwat is a general practitioner who serves as medical director for CityMD, a network of urgent care centers in New York and New Jersey. She has been a contributor to Fox News. Dr. Dave Weldon, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Weldon is a former Florida congressman who recently ran for a Florida state legislative seat and lost; Trump backed Weldon’s opponent. In Congress, Weldon weighed in on one of the nation’s most heated debates of the 1990s over quality of life and a right-to-die and whether Terri Schiavo, who was in a persistent vegetative state after cardiac arrest, should have been allowed to have her feeding tube removed. He sided with the parents who did not want it removed. Jamieson Greer, U.S. trade representative Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council Trump is turning to two officials with experience navigating not only Washington but the key issues of income taxes and tariffs as he fills out his economic team. He announced he has chosen international trade attorney Jamieson Greer to be his U.S. trade representative and Kevin Hassett as director of the White House National Economic Council. While Trump has in several cases nominated outsiders to key posts, these picks reflect a recognition that his reputation will likely hinge on restoring the public’s confidence in the economy. Trump said in a statement that Greer was instrumental in his first term in imposing tariffs on China and others and replacing the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, “therefore making it much better for American Workers.” Hassett, 62, served in the first Trump term as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. He has a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania and worked at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute before joining the Trump White House in 2017. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.HOMB Takes Additional Hurricane Reserve Out of Abundance of CautionWho killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson? What we know about the suspect on the run

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René Bennett | (TNS) Bankrate.com If you’re an iPhone user, you might not realize that you already have access to Apple Cash. It’s a digital cash card that’s built into Apple devices and can be found in the default Wallet app. (Note: You must link an eligible debit card to use this service.) The main function of Apple Cash is to make it easier for Apple device users to send money to one another, including sending money through the iMessage app. But Apple Cash is more than just a peer-to-peer (P2P) payment service — it can be used to shop online, in stores or to make in-app purchases. Apple Cash is a convenient way to transfer money between friends and family. Once it’s set up, a user can simply open the iMessage app and send money to a contact through their chat. It’s also useful for those who use Apple Pay, a separate service that allows Apple device users to make contactless payments with any linked card, including an Apple Cash card. Here are some important things to know about setting up and using Apple Cash. Apple Cash is a digital cash card that’s stored in the Wallet app of Apple devices, and it can be used for making P2P payments, as well as purchases through Apple Pay. When you receive money from another Apple Cash user, that money appears in your Apple Cash balance. The balance can then be spent or transferred to a linked bank account or debit card. Sending money to peers with Apple Cash can be done either directly from the digital Apple Cash card (in the Wallet app) or through the iMessage app. You can send or receive anywhere between $1 and $10,000 per message. The money shows up on the recipient’s Apple Cash card instantly, but it may take from one to three days for the balance to be transferred to a bank account. Instant transfers to a bank account are possible, but it comes with a 1.5% fee. There’s also an option to set up Apple Cash Family for children who are under 18 years old. This option limits the amount a child can send to $2,000 per message. Those younger than 18 also cannot add money to their Apple Cash card from a bank account; rather, their balance only grows when they receive money from another Apple Cash user. Apple Cash is a digital card within your Wallet that allows you to spend your Apple Cash online, in stores and in apps as well send and receive money. Apple Pay, however, allows you to make purchases using any credit card or debit card you have stored in your Wallet — including Apple Cash. With Apple Pay, you add credit and debit cards to your Wallet and then have the ability to pay right with your phone (or other Apple product). To set up Apple Cash, you’ll need three things: —A compatible Apple device. —Two-factor authentication enabled for your Apple ID (this can be done in Settings). —An eligible debit card to load funds onto the Apple Cash card. In the Settings app, you can turn on Apple Cash in the Wallet and Apple Pay section. Tap on the Apple Cash card icon and follow the instructions on the screen. You’ll be asked to agree to the terms and conditions, after which your device will set up Apple Cash for you. The Apple Cash card, once set up, can be found in your device’s Wallet app. If you want to set up Apple Cash Family, you’ll first need to have Family Sharing turned on, which can be done in Settings. The family organizer can add children to Apple Cash in the Family Sharing section of Settings. You’ll need to have a debit card linked to your digital Wallet to add money to an Apple Cash card. You can add a debit card to Wallet in the same place where you set up Apple Cash — the Wallet and Apple Pay section of Settings. Once a debit card is linked to your Wallet, open Wallet and tap on the Apple Cash card. Then, tap the More button (an icon with three dots). This will open a page where you can see your Apple Cash balance, add money and transfer funds to a bank account. Tap Add Money and enter the amount you’d like to add (the minimum is $10). You’ll be asked to confirm which debit card you want to use to fund the Apple Cash balance, and then the money is added to the Apple Cash card. There are two ways to send a payment to someone using Apple Cash: directly from your Wallet or in the iMessage app. Both the sender and recipient need Apple Cash to send or receive money. To send money from Wallet, simply tap the Apple Cash card in Wallet and then tap Send. Type in the contact name or phone number of the recipient. Enter the amount you’d like to send (between $1 and $10,000), then review the payment and confirm it with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. In iMessage, open the conversation with who you’d like to send money to, or start a new one. Tap on the app button, which appears next to the type bar, and then tap on the Apple Cash icon. You’ll be prompted to enter an amount (between $1 and $10,000). Once you’ve reviewed the amount, tap Send and confirm with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. The first time money is sent to someone, the recipient will need to accept the payment within seven days for it to go through. After the first instance, payments are automatically accepted. If you’re using Apple Cash to make a purchase either online or in a store, you’ll need to pay using Apple Pay. To request money from your iPhone, open the conversation in the Messages app. Tap the plus icon, followed by Apple Cash. Then, tap Request. Tap the send button to send your payment request. Once the request is sent, the person you sent it to can confirm or change the amount they send to you. You can also request money from your Apple watch. Open your messages app, choose a conversation, tap the plus icon and then choose Apple Cash. Once you enter the amount you are requesting, swipe left on the Send button. Tap Request. As you start to accumulate money on the Apple Cash card, you may want to move it to a debit card or a bank account . This can be done by going to the same place where you added funds to the card, by clicking the icon with three dots next to your digital card. Enter an amount to be transferred, then tap Next. You’ll be asked whether you want to do an instant transfer (for a 1.5% fee) or a transfer in one to three business days for free. After making a selection, the screen will instruct you to set up a bank account if you don’t already have one set up. You’ll confirm the payment, and the transfer is initiated. Instant transfers can only be made to an eligible debit card, not a bank account. Money is sent within 30 minutes when you select instant transfer. —Zelle: If your bank is offers Zelle, it might be a good idea to take advantage of the P2P payment service. Zelle can be accessed directly from your bank’s mobile app, and it allows you to send instant transfers at no extra cost. —Venmo: Anyone can use Venmo, as long as they’ve downloaded the app. Unlike Apple Cash or Zelle, it’s a standalone P2P payment app. Venmo comes with a social element — users can follow each other and add fun emojis to their payments, although they can also keep their account activity private. —PayPal: This P2P payment service is a good option if you want to send money internationally. It also offers a PayPal Debit card, which, like the Apple Cash card, can be used to make purchases online or in stores. —Samsung Pay Cash: Samsung device users can use this option instead of Apple Cash. Similar to Apple Cash, it is a digital wallet that you can access from a Samsung mobile device. However, to take full advantage of Samsung Pay Cash, users will need to undergo an extra registration process to upgrade to a Full Card Account. Apple Cash makes it easy for Apple device users to send money to each other. Users can simply tap the Apple Cash icon in their text messages to send money through iMessage. It can also be used as an extra repository for spending money and can be used for purchases anywhere Apple Pay is accepted. With that said, only Apple device users can send and receive money using Apple Cash, so those looking for a more universal payment service may want to consider other P2P payment apps . ©2024 Bankrate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy start ‘brainstorming’ with Congress to cut government spending