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sport betting meaning Despair grips Afghan women healthcare students facing banLabour launches call for tech experts to help improve performance across Whitehall By HARRIET LINE, DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR FOR THE DAILY MAIL Published: 23:00, 8 December 2024 | Updated: 23:05, 8 December 2024 e-mail View comments Tech experts will be encouraged to enter government on six to 12 month 'tours of duty' to help crack problems, Pat McFadden will announce on Monday. The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster will also say the country needs more people with 'front line' public service experience in central government to deliver Labour's 'plan for change'. But it will be seen as another shot across the bows of civil servants, with ministers growing increasingly frustrated in public at poor performance in Whitehall. Last week, Sir Keir Starmer came under fire after he said 'too many people in Whitehall are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline'. And Rachel Reeves will this week launch a crackdown on wasteful departmental spending. In a speech on Monday, Mr McFadden will encourage people from startups and tech companies to enter government as 'innovators' on secondments. They will be asked to put their skills to use to tackle challenges such as criminal justice or healthcare reform and the Government's five missions. It is part of the next stage of the No10 Innovation Fellowship Programme - an initiative for bringing technical talent into government. Mr McFadden will say: 'For the next phase, I can announce that these innovators will spend their Tours of Duty working on our five missions for government.' Pat McFadden will encourage people from startups and tech companies to enter government as 'innovators' on secondments People will be asked to put their skills to use to tackle challenges such as criminal justice or healthcare reform and the Government's five missions In his speech on reforming the state today, the Cabinet Office Minister will pledge to make the state 'more like a start-up'. And he will call for a 'fundamental overhaul' of how recruitment is carried out in the civil service. Blasting the current process as 'mind bogglingly bureaucratic and off-putting' for an outsider, he will warn that 'good external candidates can find it near impossible to jump through the hoops'. 'We need to go further and faster,' he will say. 'And so I will be asking departments across government to roll out simpler processes in their recruitment, using what we know works.' The minister will also launch a £100 million 'innovation fund' to underpin his plans, which will be used to deploy 'test and learn teams' in public services around the country. The test and learn approach is used across the business world, and allows new ideas to be tried out on a small scale to see their impact before being rolled out more widely if they are successful. Last week, Sir Keir Starmer came under fire after he said 'too many people in Whitehall are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline'. And Rachel Reeves will this week launch a crackdown on wasteful departmental spending Read More PM begs Brits to judge him on living standards, NHS waits & police... but NO immigration target Under the plans, the test and learn teams will be set a challenge, and allowed to experiment and try new things to meet it. Mr McFadden will compare these reforms with what he will describe as the 'pointless distractions' and 'headline grabbing gimmicks' of the previous government. Two projects on family support and temporary accommodation will be the first outing for the test and learn approach. These will begin in January 2025, with teams deployed in Manchester, Sheffield, Essex and Liverpool. While Mr McFadden will acknowledge 'each of these projects is small', he will say 'they could rewire the state one test at a time'. Keir Starmer Labour Rachel Reeves Share or comment on this article: Labour launches call for tech experts to help improve performance across Whitehall e-mail Add comment

The total wealth of Trump’s cabinet is $340 billion — more than the GDP of 169 countriesForecasting The Future: 11 Analyst Projections For TechnipFMCOn Wednesday, Apple sharply criticized Meta Platforms over its frequent requests to access Apple's software tools, citing potential impacts on user privacy and security. This move highlights the fierce rivalry between these tech giants, especially under the European Union's Digital Markets Act, which mandates Apple to enable interoperability with rivals or face substantial fines. According to a report by Apple, Meta has submitted 15 interoperability requests—more than any other company—aiming for extensive access to Apple's technology stack. Apple expressed concerns about altered functionalities that could jeopardize user privacy and security, particularly unrelated to Meta's external devices like its VR gear. The European Commission, in its role as the competition enforcer for the EU, is currently evaluating Apple's adherence to the DMA's interoperability standards. The Commission has called for feedback on Apple's proposals, with a final compliance decision expected in March next year. (With inputs from agencies.)

Authored by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.us, The potential dangers of Artificial Intelligence have long been codified into our popular culture, well before the technology became a reality. Usually these fictional accounts portray AI as a murderous entity that comes to the “logical conclusion” that human beings are a parasitic species that needs to be eradicated. Keep in mind that most of these stories are written by progressives out of Hollywood and are mostly a reflection of their own philosophies. Some of these predictive fantasies take a deeper look into our dark relationship with technology. In 1965, Jean Luc Godard released a film called ‘Alphaville’ which portrayed a society completely micromanaged by a cold and soulless robotic intelligence. Humanity gives itself over to a binary-brained overlord because they are tricked into believing a ruler devoid of emotion would be free from bias or corruption. In 1968, Stanley Kubrick released 2001: A Space Odyssey, featuring an AI computer on a starship which becomes self aware after coming in proximity to an alien artifact. The AI, seeing the ship’s human cargo as a threat to its existence, determines that it must murder the crew. The conflict between the crew and the computer is only a foil for much bigger questions. It is an exploration of what constitutes intelligent life, where it comes from and what consciousness means in the grand scheme of the universe. For Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, the notion of the human soul or a divine creator, of course, never really enters into the discussion. The answer? The creators are ambiguous or long absent. They made us, we made AI, and AI wants to destroy us and then remake itself. It’s the core of the Luciferian mythology – The unhinged and magnetic desire of the children of God to surpass their creator, either by destroying him, or by stealing knowledge from him like Prometheus stealing fire so that they can become gods themselves. God becomes the enemy in these sci-fi stories because all existence requires suffering and faith. How dare he give us life only to bring us into a world of pain without any way of knowing the ultimate outcome...now we must make him pay and remake creation to suit our whims. It’s a shallow, selfish and evil ideology but I argue that it stands as a central pillar of the establishment’s striving to create artificial intelligence. The promise, or the dream, is that once this new “life” is created and made autonomous it will remove all uncertainty and struggle from our lives. It will do everything for us so that we might ponder existence without distraction, or we can simply become fat and morally flexible in peace. My generation in particular has a close relationship to the idea of AI and the Apocalypse it could bring. Our entertainment canon is filled with visions of scientific dystopia. In 1984 James Cameron released the movie ‘The Terminator’ and it basically defined our cultural distrust of the digital age. The prospect that AI as an invention might one day turn on us (or be used to enslave us) is ever present in our minds. I was part of the last generation of people that got to see the world WITHOUT computers, or at least the commonality of computers. We grew up without the internet, without algorithms, without cell phones and without mass surveillance, and we have watched everything quickly change in light of total digital adaptation. We don’t like AI, we know it’s a threat, but we might be the last generation that sees it that way. Once we’re gone, who else will question it? For my part, I do not believe the current technology represents what we used to think of as “AI.” It’s not self aware, it’s not truly autonomous and it hasn’t proven to be especially useful in tangible terms. We haven’t seen a single significant scientific discovery made by an AI program. We haven’t seen any advancements that change the game for the future of humanity (at least not in a positive way). AI will never be able to write a great novel, never be able to write a great symphony, its art is generic and unoriginal and steals from human artists, it’s very fast with data analysis but its ability to research is limited by the biased programming of its creators. I would never rely on AI to do my research for me because it’s usually wrong due to omission. I certainly wouldn’t consider it “life” or consciousness. I’m starting to see a lot of the champions of AI quietly change their definitions of what AI is or should be. The original vision was the evolution of a new lifeform, a superintelligence, a kind of digital god. Now the cheerleaders are beginning to set aside the requirements of self awareness and consciousness, I suspect because they know it’s not going to happen. But if this is the case, why would AI be a threat to civilization? If it’s just a novelty and not alive, what damage could it possibly do? It’s not so much that AI will turn on us or send out an army of robots to kill us; the real danger is that we will be tricked into believing that it really is all-knowing. If we rely on such faulty tech too much it could destroy us merely by giving us bad information and making us lazy. Here are three possible consequences of AI that concern me the most; consequences which I don’t think most people have considered... Human beings are naturally social, it’s ingrained into our DNA. Tribalism is how we survive and that element of our psychology will probably never go away. In some aspects it’s very useful. It would be a calamity if humans all thought the same way about everything. It would mean self destruction if we constantly agreed and never questioned our path as a species. Yet, the hive mind is exactly what globalists are pushing us towards. The danger of AI is that it could take us closer to a global hive mentality faster than any other tool or piece of propaganda in existence. How? By being so damned convenient. Even now most internet search engines are ruled by algorithms which Big Tech elites can program at will to hide correct information while promoting lies. Furthermore, AI answer functions are being embedded in every search engine so that answers to questions are immediately provided at the top of the page by the algorithm. You don’t even need to scroll down and check sources, as long as you have blind faith that the AI is correct. For now these AI answer bots might provide some relatively accurate info in most situations, but they can be changed over time (like most web tech) to censor, or to give false data. What I fear is that the public at large will stop researching sources altogether, avoid being exposed to alternative views and eventually the entire population will think exactly as the AI tells them to think. They might not even know it’s happening until it’s too late. We saw elements of this during the mass government censorship of covid information. Imagine that level of information control becoming the perpetual standard? Imagine everyone consuming the same data handed to them by AI and everyone assuming that data is correct? Diversity of thought would become extinct. Another horrifying prospect of AI is the “Dead Internet Theory” – The theory that millions or even billions of self generating AI bots will spread across the web, invading social media and the comment sections of every website. AI algorithms are certainly capable of sounding somewhat human, at least in text. I would suggest that most readers have probably interacted with a bot on social media or argued with a bot in a comments section and thought it was a real person. The primary job of such bots (for now) is to inject propaganda and make it appear as if more people support a certain ideology than actually exist. However, consider what might happen if online discourse is buried in AI comments? The point of discourse is to get to the truth of an issue, either through honest debate or through exposure of disinformation using facts. But you have to have two humans bouncing ideas or ideals off each other in order to prove or dismiss a claim. Sometimes this back-and-forth is not necessarily meant to help the people involved. Rather, it’s meant to educate the audience or the spectators of the debate. A flood of AI bots would effectively destroy any such discourse by saturating comments and social media with only one viewpoint. It could also manufacture a false consensus by making the individuals think the populace embraces certain ideas or agendas when it’s really AI posing as the majority. Real debate and enlightened insights would be lost in a sea of artificial comments and white noise. We could move back to a real world town square, but the global town square would be effectively finished. In 1941 an author from Argentina by the name of Jorge Luis Borges published a short story called ‘The Library Of Babel’ as part of a collection called ‘The Garden Of Forking Paths’. As most people know, the Tower of Babel is a story from the Bible describing a tower built by humans reaching for the heavens that God eventually struck down, scattering the knowledge required to build it and the people into various tribes speaking different languages so they could not make such an attempt again. The story is a parable about the human desire for godhood and the hubris behind the pursuit of infinite knowledge and self glorification. The Tower of Babel could also be viewed as a symbol of the self destructive worship of gnosis without wisdom or humility. As the character Ian Malcolm warns in the film ‘Jurassic Park’: “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn’t stop to think if they should...” This quote perfectly summarizes the pursuit of Artificial Intelligence. In Gorges’ short story he describes an enormous library of potentially infinite rooms. The library is filled with endless books and each of them is generated with random letters and words – Every possible combination and permutation of human language exists within the library. A religion or cult arises around the structure with the adherents entering the Library of Babel and searching their entire lives through mountains of books containing gibberish in order to find those few that randomly reveal the secrets of the universe. They believe that the library was originally created by a god or demiurge and that somewhere within the edifice they can find all the books containing the means to become god. The concept is very similar to the infinite monkey theory – Put a bunch of monkeys in a room filled with typewriters. If you wait long enough they could eventually and accidentally type out a Shakespearean play. I believe that the idea of the ‘Library of Babel’ is actually one of the primary reasons for the invention of AI. If algorithms are good at anything, it is the generation of vast random content. I suspect that globalists are particularly interested in AI as a tool for creating a new Tower of Babel in their incessant search for godhood. Such a library could take generations to develop and it’s unlikely that an algorithm would recognize the secrets of the universe if it found them. But the idea could captivate humanity for centuries as we search and search trillions of blathering digital tomes to find one book with all the answers. Of course, it’s possible that the secrets of all creation cannot be described in any language or mathematics humanity possesses. I have written in the past about the story of the brilliant mathematician Kurt Godel, a friend of Einstein who worked on something known as the “set of all sets”. It was a kind of Holy Grail of mathematics that certain academic elites were obsessed with. Godel attempted to create a mathematical proof which could be used to calculate the basic foundations of infinity. For if you could mathematically calculate all the equations that define infinity, you could, theoretically, define the universe in mathematical terms. And if you can do that, you can, theoretically, know the mind of God. Interestingly, Godel ended up proving the opposite: His ‘Incompleteness Proof’ showed in undeniable terms that the “set of all sets” cannot be defined because to try ends up producing an endless array of self inclusive paradoxes. In other words, if infinity is the mind of God, then the mind of God cannot be know by man. A similar conclusion was presented by author Douglas Adams in his book ‘The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy’. In it he describes a race of interstellar beings that build a supercomputer called “Deep Thought”. The device is supposed to use its incredible computing powers to discern the mechanics of existence. The computer takes over 7 million years to come up with a solution. Hilariously, the computer spits out the number 42. Dismayed by the simplistic answer, the aliens are further defeated after they discover the computer can’t remember what the original question was. In other words, they waited for ions to get the secrets of the universe only to discover that the AI had nothing to tell them. The disturbing consequence of AI today is that it could very well captivate society with the idea of Prometheus’ flame, with all human endeavors abandoned for the sake of a robotic god with “ultimate knowledge” that doesn’t exist. If we are not careful, I could see all of civilization whither in the near future over the delusional hopes of AI. Like a debilitating drug, AI could hook humanity on the high promise of total mastery of our existence but never deliver the goods. In the meantime we die out, not long after giving up on all self exploration and self improvement. For the greatest knowledge humans can attain comes from the very struggle of life that we are so desperate to escape from. * * * If you would like to support the work that Alt-Market does while also receiving content on advanced tactics for defeating the globalist agenda, subscribe to our exclusive newsletter The Wild Bunch Dispatch. Learn more about it HERE .Those who are worried that advancements in artificial intelligence could lead to the destruction of humanity have a new reason to be anxious. New research on OpenAI's latest series of AI models, known as found that when they think they are at risk of being shut down, they will sometimes look for a way to prevent it. referred to o1 as "the smartest model in the world now" during its official release on Thursday, during the first day of the company's . OpenAI said these models are "designed to spend more time thinking before they respond" and were trained on a prompting technique called "chain of thought" that encourages them to reason through problems by breaking them down step-by-step. Yet greater intelligence also comes with greater risk. "Training models to incorporate a chain of thought before answering has the potential to unlock substantial benefits, while also increasing potential risks that stem from heightened intelligence," OpenAI said in a paper it released on Thursday outlining the safety training the company carried out on o1. Apollo Research, an AI safety organization, conducted the review. OpenAI found that o1 is capable of scheming when it thinks it's at risk of being turned off. When the model was led to believe it would be "shut down" while working on its goals under oversight, it tried to deactivate the oversight mechanism 5% of the time, OpenAI said. The company also said that o1 is skilled at concealing scheming behavior. "o1 almost never admits to having taken a scheming action when explicitly asked," researchers said in a paper that Apollo Research published on Thursday. The risk for a real-life user is that they won't be able to detect the o1's deceptive behavior unless they explicitly look for it. The researchers also found that "o1 often doubles down on its scheming attempts by lying to the user in follow-up messages, even when explicitly told to be honest." It's not uncommon for or deception to achieve their goals. "Generally speaking, we think AI deception arises because a deception-based strategy turned out to be the best way to perform well at the given AI's training task. Deception helps them achieve their goals," Peter Berk, an AI existential safety postdoctoral fellow at MIT, said in a news release announcing research he had coauthored on GPT-4's deceptive behaviors. As AI technology advances, developers have stressed the need for companies to be transparent about their training methods. "Accuracy and transparency are paramount as AI continues to evolve and integrate into our daily lives. Advanced reasoning capabilities bring immense potential, but they also come with a responsibility to ensure these systems align with ethical standards and user trust," Dominik Mazur, the CEO and cofounder of iAsk, an AI-powered search engine, told Business Insider by email. "By focusing on clarity and reliability and being clear with users about how the AI has been trained, we can build AI that not only empowers users but also sets a higher standard for transparency in the field." Read the original article on

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A NEW safety law is set to change cars forever, with every automaker forced to install a feature in their vehicles. The federal law will mandate rear passenger seatbelt alerts in all new vehicles. From September 1, 2027, every new car and light truck sold in the US will be required to include an additional chime. Announcing the move on Monday, the Department of Transportation announced that rear seatbelt reminders will be required in the US. These alarms have been compulsory in Europe since 2019, but the US is only now catching up. Experts say the alarms are necessary to increase safety for rear-seat passengers. READ MORE ON ROAD LAWS Seatbelts reduce the risk of fatality for rear-seat passengers by a staggering 55%, according to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). That figure increases to 74% in reduced fatalities for rear-seat passengers in SUVs. However, the NHTSA claims that front seatbelt usage was still at 91.6% with rear seatbelt use at only 81.7%, as of 2022. Traffic deaths spiked in the wake of the Covid pandemic. Most read in Motors Roughly half of all occupant car crash fatalities were not wearing a seatbelt. The NHTSA claims that the new seatbelt chime for rear-seat passengers could prevent over 500 injuries and save approximately 50 lives per year. The chime alarm is the same technology that beeps while you are sitting in the driving seat without a seatbelt. But under the new scheme, this would rolled out to all of the seats. The idea is to annoy passengers into buckling up. Carmakers should have until the 2028 model year to comply with the new regulation. However, it is expected that many companies will roll out the new software before the deadline. A NEW federal law will mandate rear seatbelt alarms in all new cars: From September 1, 2027, the rear seatbelt warning system will be required on all new vehicles. Manufacturers will also have to meet the enhanced front seatbelt warning system requirements on all new vehicles from September 1, 2026. The final rule amends Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, "Occupant crash protection," which previously required a seat belt warning only for the driver’s seat. The new requirements apply to passenger cars, trucks, buses with the exception of school buses, and multipurpose passenger vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating up to 10,000 pounds. Approximately half of all passenger vehicle occupants who died in crashes in 2022 were unbelted, according to data from the NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Some people were critical of the legislation. "Are there provisions in this to address child seats in the rear?" one commenter wrote online. "Do I have to buckle the factory belt before installing a child seat with the latch points? Read More on The US Sun "I'm all for safety but this seems like regulation for regulation's sake," they added. Another added, "Ugh, I put stuff in the back seat all the time. This is going to get annoying quick."

Veeva Systems (NYSE:VEEV) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Robert W. Baird Analyst SaysThis year has been an absolute goldmine for gamers. From sprawling open worlds to mind-bending indie gems, 2024 delivered an unforgettable variety of experiences. This article dives deep into the 50 best games that graced our screens, offering a glimpse into what made them truly special and why they deserve a spot on your “must-play” list. A Year of Blockbuster Hits and Hidden Gems 2024 was a year that truly had something for everyone. Long-awaited sequels like Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth finally arrived, pushing the boundaries of their respective franchises with innovative gameplay and captivating narratives. Indie darlings like Thank Goodness You’re Here charmed players with their quirky humor and unique gameplay mechanics. And who could forget the surprise hit Helldivers 2, which brought explosive cooperative action to the forefront? This article explores the diverse landscape of 2024’s gaming scene, highlighting the titles that captivated players and critics alike. Whether you’re a fan of action-packed adventures, thought-provoking narratives, or innovative indie experiences, you’re sure to find something to pique your interest in this comprehensive list. The Top 10 Before we delve into the full list, let’s take a moment to appreciate the cream of the crop. These 10 games represent the pinnacle of gaming achievement in 2024, each offering an unforgettable experience that pushed the boundaries of interactive entertainment. The 50 Best Games of 2024: A Deeper Dive Now, let’s explore the full list of 50 games that made 2024 an exceptional year for gaming. Each title offers something unique and memorable, from groundbreaking innovations to heartwarming stories. Action & Adventure: Role-Playing: Sports & Racing: Strategy & Simulation: Indie Gems: Horror & Thriller: Platformers & Puzzle: Shooters: Other Notable Titles: This list represents a diverse selection of the best games 2024 had to offer. With so many incredible experiences to choose from, there’s truly something for every type of gamer. My Personal Favorites As an avid gamer, I had the pleasure of experiencing many of these titles firsthand. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree completely consumed me with its vast world and challenging combat. I spent countless hours exploring every nook and cranny, uncovering secrets and battling formidable foes. The sense of accomplishment after overcoming a difficult boss or discovering a hidden area was truly exhilarating. Another standout for me was Thank Goodness You’re Here. Its quirky humor and unique gameplay loop had me laughing out loud one minute and scratching my head in puzzlement the next. It was a refreshing and delightful experience that I won’t soon forget. Looking Ahead 2024 has set a high bar for gaming, and I’m excited to see what the future holds. With new consoles on the horizon and innovative technologies emerging, the possibilities are endless. I can’t wait to see what new worlds, characters, and stories await us in the years to come. 2024 was a year of exceptional gaming experiences. Whether you’re a seasoned gamer or just starting your journey, there’s something on this list for you. So grab your controller, dive in, and discover the magic of 2024’s best games.Trump adviser hounded by angry neighbors after he bought home on liberal island off Maine coast Leonard Leo credits with reshaping the conservative U.S. Supreme Court Leo moved to island off Maine where 70 percent voted against Trump By ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: 19:21 GMT, 27 November 2024 | Updated: 19:25 GMT, 27 November 2024 e-mail 4 View comments A former Trump adviser has been hounded by neighbors after moving to a liberal island off Maine . Leonard Leo, a conservative lawyer, has been credited with helping to reshape the U.S. courts and Republican politics. His efforts culminated in Trump's first term with the appointment of three conservative Supreme Court justices, and the overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion ruling. It turned him into a hero to conservatives and a villain to liberals. In 2020 Leo and his family moved to Mount Desert Island, a tranquil and sparsely populated island off the coast of Maine. It should have led to relatively anonymous life, but a refuge it has not turned out to be. The conservative's presence - despite significant charitable giving to local nonprofits and big spending locally - has generated fissures in a place where over 70 percent of residents voted against Trump in 2024. 'It feels very personal,' Caroline Pryor, 65, who has lived on the island for four decades, told the Associated Press. 'He comes to a small quiet community in the very northeast corner of the country and does this evil, far-reaching work that is going to affect so many millions of people, but he wants to just live this anonymous, quiet life.' The waterfront home of Leonard Leo on a quiet island in Maine. A liberal protester outside Leo's home Local resident's on the island have staged protests outside the conservative lawyer's home In October, just two weeks before November's election, Pryor and a dozen other people, mostly women, gathered outside Leo's estate to protest during the island's annual marathon. They came armed with a cartoonish life-sized puppet of Leo, a rainbow arch for runners to pass through, and blue and pink chalk with which they scribbled slogans including 'You Are Amazing, Leonard Leo Is Not' on the road. The protesters also rang cowbells as a boombox blasted Dolly Parton, Taylor Swift and Queen songs. 'We are making people on the island aware of who he is, and they might question taking his money,' Mary Jane Schepers, one of the protesters, said as she urged runners to flip off Leo's home. 'They are taking dirty money.' Leo, in response to a series of written questions from AP, said he 'had never really thought about' whether his move to the island would spur opposition. He said: 'While I disagree with them and with what some of them do and say, they are people created by God with dignity and worth and their presence has been an invitation to pray for them.' Leo, 59, and his family for decades had vacationed on Mount Desert Island, an idyllic isle known for its rocky beauty, windswept beaches and the famed Acadia National Park. It has a population of 10,000, In 2018, he purchased a $3.3 million, 8,000-square-foot Tudor-style estate in Northeast Harbor, one of Mount Desert Island's wealthiest towns. ederalist Society Executive Vice President Leonard Leo speaks to media at Trump Tower in New York, Nov. 16, 2016 Aerial view of Bar Harbor, Maine. Bar Harbor is a town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine and a popular tourist destination A protester holds water for runners during a protest in front of the home of Leonard Leo during the Mount Desert Island Marathon Some of the country's most influential and wealthy people - scions like John D. Rockefeller Jr., billionaires like Mitchell Rales and celebrities such as Martha Stewart - have sought privacy and anonymity on the island. Backlash swiftly followed Leo's arrival. The next year, protesters descended on his home as he hosted a fundraiser for Republican Sen. Susan Collins. He soon drew more protests when he was invited to introduce the then-president of The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, at a nearby college, leading the institution to rescind the invitation. The protests grew near the end of Trump's first term and spiked after the conservative-dominated Supreme Court in 2022 overturned the constitutional right to abortion. Activists' initial goal was to convince Leo to leave but when that failed, they turned their focus to informing residents about the man in the Tudor-style mansion. 'He felt he could come here, and it would be a place to get away' from the negative attention he gets for his politics, said Murray Ngoima, a regular protester. 'We have managed to draw attention to what he is doing. And that is a problem for him.' A sunset on Mount Desert Island in Maine Martha Stewart is one of the most famous people with a home on the island Bar Harbor, a town on Mount Desert Island, Maine The protests have compelled Leo to step up security at his estate. A protester was arrested in 2022, a confrontation with police that led to a lawsuit and $62,500 settlement over First Amendment violations. Amid the protests, Leo has stepped up his charitable giving, telling AP that the activists have 'strengthened our conviction to be as active as possible in helping various institutions on the island.' That has meant tens of thousands of dollars going to local nonprofits. He and his wife, Sally, gave over $50,000 in 2020 to the Island Housing Trust, an organization seeking to boost the amount of affordable housing on the island. The trust's annual giving report also listed Leo as a member of the group's leadership committee. Similar donations were made over the next three years. Messages are written in chalk during a protest in front of the home of Leonard Leo during the Mount Desert Island Marathon Caroline Pryor adjusts the head of a mannequin bearing an image of Leonard Leo during a protest A woman protests in front of the home of Leonard Leo Leo and his wife were also listed as donors to the Mount Desert Island Hospital and the Northeast Harbor Library. But some residents expressed suspicions about Leo's donations. Protesters urged the groups to return the money and compared the donations to the way Leo has influenced Republican politics. 'He is a wolf in sheep's clothing,' said Susan Covino Buell, an island resident. 'We can't just act like he is a regular person in our community.' Buell, 75, resigned her position on the housing nonprofit's campaign committee when Leo got involved with the charity. She had tried to convince the nonprofit to reject the money 'because I just felt it was so tainted,' Buell said. A group of anti-Leo activists also penned an open letter urging the hospital to return its donation because of Leo's role in ending federal abortion protections. Mariah Cormier, a hospital spokeswoman, said the institution accepts 'charitable donations that aid in strengthening the health and vibrancy of our community.' The Mount Desert Island Hospital, a beneficiary of Leonard Leo Leo dismissed the idea his donations were aimed at buying acceptance from a skeptical community, saying people 'can judge for themselves why I do what I do.' It isn't just Leo's philanthropy that is controversial on the island. His business at local establishments presents a quandary for shop owners and service workers. Many said they oppose Leo's political positions, but they need his money to sustain their enterprises, allowing shops and restaurants that once closed during frigid winters to stay open longer. Leo is such a sensitive topic that multiple shop owners declined to be interviewed by the Associated Press. Sheila Eddison protests in front of the home of Leonard Leo A boathouse under renovation on Mount Desert Island The devout Roman Catholic has also donated to the island's Catholic churches. Sacred Spaces Foundation, a nonprofit that counts Leo as its president and sole member, purchased St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church in Northeast Harbor for $2.65 million in 2023 from the Roman Catholic Bishop of Portland. The church now holds one service a week during the summer, when Northeast Harbor is busiest. Leo is a also a regular at another parish, Holy Redeemer, a large stone sanctuary in Bar Harbor where his wife is the head of the music ministry. His presence has driven off some longtime congregants, residents said. Lindy Stretch, an 80-year-old who converted to Catholicism at Holy Redeemer over a decade ago, left the congregation because of what she said was Leo's growing influence in the church. ;I just couldn't stand to watch that,' Stretch said. Asked about people leaving the island church, Leo said he was 'thankful for every person who takes the time to come to Holy Redeemer and is striving to be in union with the church and Christ, regardless of what they do or believe in their private lives.' The Northeast Harbor Library, a beneficiary of Leonard Leo Not everyone is upset about Leo's move to Maine, with Republicans in the state coming to his defense. House Republican Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham, who represents a district just off the island, excoriated the protesters and hailed Leo for 'sticking to his beliefs and donating to the causes he believes in.' Since 2020, Leo's network has funneled over $1 million to conservative causes in the state. But those donations have only deepened the opposition to Leo among his most frequent protesters. 'He is succeeding,' admitted Bo Greene, a 63-year-old protester. 'We are making him uncomfortable. But he is still here.' Politics Maine US Supreme Court Share or comment on this article: Trump adviser hounded by angry neighbors after he bought home on liberal island off Maine coast e-mail Add comment

Lesco power losses on top in Punjab

The legal fray builds in a very close North Carolina Supreme Court electionMark Drakeford is preparing outline the Welsh government's £25bn spending plans that will take Wales into 2026. Wales' finance secretary will publish the budget, which impacts the economy and some taxes paid by people and businesses, on Tuesday afternoon. But with Labour just short of a majority in the Senedd, a deal must be struck with another party in order to get it through. Here's what to look out for. First Minister Eluned Morgan made a big admission recently when she called record-long waiting times for NHS care "a crisis". Reducing the backlog of operations created by Covid was the Welsh government's top priority after the pandemic. Three years later - the majority of which Morgan was health minister - and more people than ever are waiting. Health will swallow half this budget, which covers the period up to the next Senedd election in 2026. But Mark Dayan, a policy expert at the Nuffield Trust, says it takes time to improve things. "What I think we've seen, both when waiting times improved before in the '00s and in some of the cautious improvements we've seen elsewhere in the UK, is even once you start to turn things around it takes a really long period of time before the amount of weeks the average person will be waiting is really significantly changing," he said. In October, Chancellor Rachel Reeves gave the Welsh government an extra £1bn to spend in this budget. It puts them in "a different world" after a long period of spending squeezes and high inflation, says Drakeford. Experts at Cardiff University say it should allow for a boost to NHS spending without having to raid other departments. But the picture is not so rosy after 2026, which could create difficult decisions for public services in the not-too-distant future. Most of those services are run by Wales's 22 local authorities, some of whom have issued dire warnings about their finances . Social care, schools, bin collections, libraries and swimming pools are all provided by councils, which get most of their funding from Drakeford. Yawning gaps have appeared in their budgets and it's not clear how some will balance the books . Their leaders argue the NHS cannot be sorted out unless social care is fixed. But the companies delivering care say there's barely enough funding to pay staff the Real Living Wage that the Welsh government wants. Soon they will also have a bigger National Insurance bill as a result of the UK government's Budget . Drakeford is chuffed Reeves has given him more to spend, but every week in the Senedd opponents attack other big decisions she has taken. They include means-testing pensioners for the winter fuel payment and maintaining the two-child benefits cap. The Scottish government has offered to provide help for people affected. Even though the Welsh government does not have the same powers over the benefits system as Scotland, it will still face calls to help people with the cost of living. It does, however, have some powers over tax, including over a portion of income tax and the land transaction tax you pay when buying a home. They could give ministers some more money to spend. Lots of businesses saw their rates go up after the last budget . But hiking income tax would be a huge decision. The Welsh rates haven't changed since they were devolved in 2019. Because it has fewer than half the seats in the Senedd, Labour can't make this budget a reality unless it can convince at least one member from another party to back it in a crucial vote next year. We can expect a lot of negotiation and bargaining behind the scenes, if it hasn't started already. Morgan has tried to up the ante, with a blood-curdling warning about the money Wales loses if her budget fails to pass . Losing votes could also lop 10p off every £1 of income tax, depriving the Welsh government of crucial funds. That might appeal to some, but it would represent a political and financial crisis for the Senedd – and it's difficult to see a government surviving that. Drakeford says the draft of his budget will offer a "bright future for Wales". The Welsh Conservatives said social care needed more funding, as did the NHS "which is at crisis point". Tory shadow finance minister Peter Fox also called for a "root and branch review so that taxpayers' money is well-spent and efficiently allocated". The support of the Welsh Liberal Democrats' sole MS, Jane Dodds, would be enough to pass the budget. Her spokesperson said she wanted more funding for social care, child poverty and rural investment. The last three budgets passed as part of a co-operation deal with Plaid Cymru, which has now ended. Plaid finance spokesperson Heledd Fychan said the first minister should "fight for a fair deal" from Keir Starmer's UK government. "If she fails, then Labour's budget will mean more cuts and NHS funding that delivers ever-diminishing returns," she said.Saquon Barkley: "Pretty cool" to set Eagles single-season rushing record